JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – The top two field goal percentage defenses sqaure off when Carson-Newman (15-6, 9-4 SAC) meets Mars Hill (11-11, 5-7 SAC) for a South Atlantic Conference contest tomorrow evening at 5:30 p.m. inside Stanford Arena.
Last time these two ball teams met, Mars Hill knocked off C-N for the first time since 2016 after a 69-64 win on Feb 8, 2023. This year, nearly one year after Carson-Newman will have the chance to avenge last season's loss and get back in the win column. Prior to last season, C-N had won 13 straight games over the Lions. Since head coach Mike Mincey took over, the Lady Eagles are 20-4 against Mars Hill and are 9-3 at Stanford Arena.
Falling just short of a comeback bid on Saturday against #14 Catawba, Carson-Newman is now 3-6 on the road this season and 2-4 in SAC road games. It's just the second time C-N has lost a game when scoring 70 points or more this season.
Carson-Newman leads the SAC in assists per game at 18, ranking seventh nationally. The Lady Eagles have nine games with 20 or more assists and have won eight of them.
After making 18 three-pointers in its last three games combined, Carson-Newman erupted for 15 on Saturday, shooting 45%. It was the most three-pointers in a game since making 15 against Queens on Feb. 22, 2020.
Finishing with a career-high 32 points on a career-high seven made triple last time out, junior guard Campbell Penland (Sevierville, Tenn.) moved into seventh all-time in three-pointers made in program history. Those seven made threes tied teammate Braelyn Wykle's (Greeneville, Tenn.) mark for threes made in a game in program history.
The Lady Eagles defense has been a main reason for the success of this year's group. Mincey's unit has forced 18 opponents to shoot below 38%. Only three 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 35.9%, a mark that is 32nd in the country.
The Lions are right behind C-N in field goal percentage defense at 36.2 and 27.2 from beyond the arc. Only seven opponents have shot better than 40% against the Lions this season.
Mars Hill wraps up a four-game home stretch on Wednesday evening when Carson-Newman visits Stanford Arena. The Lions are playing their best basketball of the season, having won three straight games for the first time all season. Two of the three victories are against SAC schools, and all three wins have been by 13 points or more.
Wednesday's game will be the fourth time C-N faces off against the reigning conference player of the week. SAC Player of the Week Maddie Gillie is coming off a pair of 30-point performances where she drilled 16 three-pointers in Mars Hill's two wins last week. During the UVA Wise win on Saturday, Gillie joined the 1,000-point club. She averages 16 points per game and has scored 20 or more on seven different occasions this year. For the season, the guard has a league-high 79 three-pointers made.
Jo Snow and Tateyoina Harris both score in double-figures on average at 11 and 10 respectively. Harris averages a team-best nine rebounds per game, fifth-most in the SAC.
Mars Hill is the best rebounding team in the league, getting almost 45 boards a game, nearly eight more than its opponents on average.
Broadcast coverage airs on Mountain Talk 106.3 FM and cneagles.com/live starting at 5:15 p.m. with "The AEC Countdown to Tip-Off" courtesy of the Eagle Sports Network.
