JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – For the second time this season, Carson-Newman (15-5, 9-3 SAC) gets its chance to knock off a ranked team when it travels to Salisbury, North Carolina to meet #14 Catawba (14-3, 9-2 SAC) Saturday afternoon inside Goodman Gym.
Two days before Thanksgiving, Carson-Newman crushed #23 Wingate 93-64 inside of Holt Fieldhouse. Now, C-N gets its chance to knock off #14 Catawba on Saturday. Four of the last five meetings between the two schools have featured Catawba as a ranked team. It's the second time in three seasons that Catawba will be ranked #14 in the WBCA poll and face C-N. It won that meeting on Feb. 12, 2022 at Holt by four points. Carson-Newman's last road win against a ranked team was against Catawba back on Jan. 12, 2022, an 83-78 overtime victory.
The Lady Eagles head to Salisbury, where they have had success recently. Despite a 94-85 loss nearly a full year ago, Carson-Newman prior to that loss had won six straight games at Goodman gym. Two of those wins came in overtime. Overall, seven of the last nine meetings have been decided by single digits. Catawba leads the all-time tally 41-36.
It's a matchup that features the top two teams in the South Atlantic Conference. Catawba holds a half game edge in the standings at 9-2 over Carson-Newman, who is tied for second with Lenoir-Rhyne at 9-3.
The matchup also features two of the most prolific and storied players in their respective programs history. Braelyn Wykle (Greeneville, Tenn.) and Lyrik Thorne both hold the all-time scoring record for their programs. Wykle leads all active D2 players with 2,471 career points, while Thorne is fourth among active players with 1,935 career points. Wykle also owns Carson-Newman's three-point record with 318 makes, the most among active players as well. This season, Thorne leads the SAC in scoring at 20.4 points per game, the fourth most points per game in the country.
Carson-Newman closed the month of January with five straight wins, matching its longest winning streak of the season. Four of the five wins were by double digits, and eight of C-N's nine conference wins this season are by double digits.
The Lady Eagles defense has been on another level this season. Mincey's unit has forced opponents to shoot below 38% in eleven straight games. Only two opponents have managed to shoot 40% or better on C-N this season. To no surprise, Carson-Newman is first in the league in field goal percentage defense at 35.3%, a mark that is 25th in the country.
In the month of January, Lindsey Taylor (Maryville, Tenn.) scored in double-figures in all nine games and averaged 22.0 points per game, shooting 72% from the field. Her field goal percentage is up to 64.1%, the best mark in the country. She recorded three double-doubles in the month and has seven this season and 22 in her C-N career. As a result of the strong month of scoring, Taylor moved into 23rd all-time in scoring at C-N with 1,105 points. The senior is 81 points away from moving into the top 20.
Campbell Penland (Sevierville, Tenn.) continues to climb the three-point charts. She is one three-pointer away from moving into seventh place all-time. She currently has 131 three-pointers in 82 career games.
Catawba enters Saturday's matchup off a 70-64 road win against Limestone on Wednesday. The Indians are #14 in the WBCA poll and have been ranked in the top 15 all season long. Terrence McCutcheon's team is unbeaten at home this season at 8-0 and has won 28 straight games at home. Their last loss in Salisbury came on Feb 7th, 2022, against Wingate.
First team All-SAC guards Lyrik Thorne and Janiya Downs lead a quality Catawba team. Thorne is averaging 20.4 points per game and has scored 20 or more in eight of her last nine games. Downs averages 13 a game and grabs a team-high seven rebounds. Catawba leads the SAC in free throws made per game, making nearly 15 a night. It makes the second-most three-pointers in the league well.
Tipoff from Goodman Gym is set for 2:00 p.m. Broadcast coverage airs on Mountain Talk 106.3 FM and cneagles.com/live starting at 1:45 p.m. with "The AEC Countdown to Tip-Off" courtesy of the Eagle Sports Network.
