Tumer's last-second heroics lift Eagles to 73-71 win at Mars Hill
MARS HILL, N.C. — Junior guard Bradley Tumer (Mt. Dora, Fla.) knocked down a jumper with 1.5 seconds remaining to lift the Carson-Newman men's basketball team to a thrilling 73-71 victory at Mars Hill on Wednesday night in South Atlantic Conference action at Stanford Arena.
MARS HILL, N.C. — Junior guard Bradley Tumer (Mt. Dora, Fla.) knocked down a jumper with 1.5 seconds remaining to lift the Carson-Newman men's basketball team to a thrilling 73-71 victory at Mars Hill on Wednesday night in South Atlantic Conference action at Stanford Arena.
The Eagles led by as many as 16 points in the second half before the Lions stormed back with a 20-5 run that trimmed C-N's lead to 61-60 with 5:55 remaining. Mars Hill tied the game at 64-64 at the 4:07 mark on a pair of made free throws by Donterious Hughes (Gastonia, N.C.).
The teams then battled back and forth, playing to three more ties before Tumer sank the game-winning jumper to send the Eagles home with their third straight victory. The win marked the first time since 2008 that C-N has won three straight SAC contests as well as three straight road victories.
C-N improves to 7-8 overall and 4-3 in the conference, while Mars Hill drops to 5-10 on the season and 2-5 in SAC play.
The Eagles torched the nets at a 51.8 percent clip (29-of-56), including a 10-of-21 effort from 3-point range. Mars Hill shot just 35.8 percent (24-of-67), including 1-of-18 from behind the arc. However, the Lions outrebounded C-N 43-36, including 22 offensive rebounds. Mars Hill also took advantage of 23 C-N turnovers by scoring 25 points.
Junior forward John Holleman (Petersburg, Va.) and junior guard Antonio Sullivan (Louisville, Ky.) paced the Eagles with 16 points apiece. Holleman also had eight rebounds and four blocked shots. Sullivan reached double figures for an eighth straight game. Kevin Leatherwood (Charlottesville, Va.) added 11 points, including a 3-for-3 night from 3-point range, while Ishmael Sanders (Cleveland, Tenn.) pitched in 10 points. Tumer finished the night with six points and tied a career-high with nine assists.
Dion Malachi (Shelby, N.C.) fired in a game-high 24 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to lead Mars Hill, while Sammy Emile (Lake Worth, Fla.) tossed in 16 points in the loss.
The Eagles got off to a sluggish start by missing their first eight shots and committing five turnovers, as Mars Hill jumped out to a 9-0 lead behind five points from Malachi.
A 3-pointer by Sullivan at the 12:55 mark gave C-N its first points of the game, igniting the Eagle offense. C-N then began to slowly chip away, as Holleman delivered a putback with 6:37 remaining to trim Mars Hill's lead to 17-15. Sullivan then drilled another 3-pointer to give C-N its first lead of the game at 18-17.
The teams then played through three ties and three lead changes before a 3-pointer by Sanders at the 1:31 mark put the Eagles ahead for the remainder of the half. C-N took a 33-30 advantage into the locker room.
C-N opened the second half on a 23-10 run capped off by a 3-pointer by Leatherwood with 12:18 left to give the Eagles a 56-40 cushion.
Mars Hill answered with a 20-5 run to climb back into the game, but after the teams played through four ties, Tumer sealed the win for the Eagles by sinking his last-second jump shot.
The Eagles return to action on Saturday in a SAC matchup at Anderson. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m. at the Abney Athletic Center in Anderson, S.C.
