VIDEO: 2024-25 Carson-Newman Women's Basketball Hype Video
VIDEO: 2024-25 Women's Basketball Roster Video
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Two contests are on the docket to open the 2024-25 season, as No. 14/8 Carson-Newman hits the road for the SAC/Peach Belt Challenge with a matchup on Saturday at 5:00 p.m. against Lander and then Sunday afternoon at 12:00 p.m. vs USC Aiken at Finis Horne Arena.
"We have a good core group returning," Carson-Newman women's basketball head coach Mike Mincey said. "As any year, when you are putting together a new group it's fun to see how they are going to perform and see how they stack up with teams of the past. Starting as highly ranked as we are, it puts a target on your back. Sometimes we have handled it well in the past and other times we have not. It'll be curious to see how we handle it starting this weekend."
Carson-Newman is hoping for more of the same success that it had in 2023-24, as it readies for the upcoming season, starting the season at No. 14 in the coaches poll and No. 8 in the media poll. This past year, the Lady Eagles made the NCAA Tournament for the 13th time in program history and the sixth time in the past seven seasons, earning a number two seed in the Southeast region their highest ranking since being the top seed in 2018. C-N had success in the postseason, winning its first two NCAA Tournament games to earn their third trip to the Sweet 16 and regional title game.
Mike Mincey's team was one of the best rebounding teams in the country last season, grabbing 43 boards per game, the 11th most in DII. The offense dished out 17 assists per game, the sixth-best nationally and scored 76.3 points, which was 12th highest.
The Lady Eagles are 34-12 all-time in season openers and won their opener the past two seasons. Over the past 11 seasons, Carson-Newman is 10-1 in the first game of the year and under Mincey are 10-3.
C-N has been playing the SAC/Peach Belt challenge versus USC Aiken and Lander every season since 2014 except for the covid-shortened 2021 season. Carson-Newman has gone 16-2, with the only two losses coming against Lander in 2016 and 2021.
C-N has won back-to-back meetings against the Bearcats and leads the all-time series 11-8. Saturday's contest will be just the fifth ever meeting in Greenwood.
The Lady Eagles only lose 30% of their scoring from this past season, all of which mainly came from the program's all-time leading scorer Braelyn Wykle, who also graduates as the program's all-time leader in three-pointers made. Back is All-SAC forward and four-time preseason All-SAC first team pick Lindsey Taylor, who scored 14.7 points on average and led the rebounding effort with seven per night. Taylor was the fifth-most efficient scorer in the country, making 60% of her shots. Three other starters return from a NCAA Tournament team, featuring 1,000-point scorer Campbell Penland who averaged 10 points per game and is sixth all-time in three-pointers made with 163.
Picked seventh in the Peach Belt's preseason poll, Lander will enter the season with an all-new coaching staff led by Nicole Shelwick, the program's 12th head coach. Shelwick joins Lander following her tenure as associate head coach and recruiting coordinator at Division I Detroit Mercy, where she helped the Titans achieve a 17-win season their best record since 2017.
Despite the coaching chance, Lander has five returners led by Quadaija Langley. She started all 28 contests for the Bearcats last year and led the team in scoring, averaging 11.3 points per game.
Coming off a 5-23 overall record during the 2023-24 season, USC Aiken was picked to finish tenth in the PBC's Preseason poll. Entering his ninth season as head coach, Mark Miller's team has six upperclassmen and eleven underclassmen. Among the key returning players, five of them have combined to play in 98 games.
The Pacers lose their top four scorers from last season with Jaya Nelson being the team's top returner. She averaged 5.3 points per game and started in 23 of the 28 games.
The Lady Eagles have won nine in a row against the Pacers and are coming off a convincing 87-47 win in this past season meeting. During this winning streak, Mincey's squad has six double-digit victories that have all come consecutively.
Tipoff is set for 5:00 p.m. Coverage on the Eagle Sports Network begins at 4:45 with the AEC Countdown to Tipoff on MIX 105.5 (WSEV-FM, Sevierville) and online at cneagles.com/live.
