Eagles Host Mars Hill Saturday Night
Jan. 9, 2009
JEFFERSON CITY - The Carson-Newman men's basketball team will look to end a five-game losing streak Saturday night as Mars Hill visits Jefferson City for a South Atlantic Conference showdown.
Tip-off is scheduled for 8 p.m. at Holt Fieldhouse. The game will be broadcast live on WMTN-AM 1300, beginning with the women's contest at 6 p.m. It will also be available on the internet, by visiting www.wmtnradio.com.
Carson-Newman enters the contest 4-9 overall, 1-1 in conference play. Mars Hill is 9-3 overall but 0-2 in the SAC.
The Eagles are coming off an 89-73 loss at Newberry last Saturday in which they fell behind by double digits in a turnover-plagued first half and never could recover.
Mars Hill dropped an 88-70 decision to Newberry Wednesday night.
Saturday's matchup will feature two of the top scoring offenses in the SAC, with Carson-Newman averaging 93.3 points per game and Mars Hill posting 86.1 ppg.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, both teams rank in the bottom three of the league in defense, with the Eagles giving up a SAC-worst 93.0 ppg.
"Defensively, we have to contain and contest their perimeter jump shots," said C-N head coach Dale Clayton. "Mars Hill's offense is based on penetration and aggressive rebounding on both ends. We have to be ready to deal with both."
"Offensively, we have to handle their pressure and limit our turnovers in the half court," Clayton added.
Mars Hill is led on offense by junior shooting guard Danny Sanders, who is posting 17.8 ppg -sixth best in the SAC. Fellow guard P.J. Gore is right behind him at 17.4 ppg. Sanders also leads the team in rebounding with 7.4 per game.
Carson-Newman has been paced by junior transfer Joey Cameron's 15.7 points and 7.3 rebounds per game.
Clayton says other players will have to have big nights, however, if Carson-Newman hopes to get back on the winning track.
"Adam Plavich needs to continue to shoot the ball well," Clayton said of his sophomore guard who has made 10-of-15 three-point attempts the last two games.
"I think point guard Jordan Dixon's ability to read and recognize defenses will be another key."
Carson-Newman leads the all-time series between the two schools, 41-13. The Eagles won both regular-season meetings a year ago, before falling to the then 6th-seeded Lions in the first round of the Food Lion South Atlantic Conference Tournament.
-C-N-
