Eagles return from break with road trip to league-leading Wingate
January 3, 2014

Eagles return from break with road trip to league-leading Wingate

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman (6-3, 3-2 South Atlantic Conference) looks to snap a two-game losing skid in a difficult way. The Eagles tangle with league-leading Wingate (8-1, 5-0 SAC) Saturday at 4 p.m. at Cuddy Arena in Wingate, N.C.

Carson-Newman Game Notes

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman (6-3, 3-2 South Atlantic Conference) looks to snap a two-game losing skid in a difficult way. The Eagles tangle with league-leading Wingate (8-1, 5-0 SAC) Saturday at 4 p.m. at Cuddy Arena in Wingate, N.C.

C-N is looking to avoid its first three-game losing streak since Feb. 11-18 of 2012 when the Eagles lost at Lenoir-Rhyne and Mars Hill before a home loss to Newberry.  The Eagles are coming off a 72-66 home loss to Limestone where C-N shot 34.9 percent from the field – the sixth lowest field goal percentage of the Chuck Benson era. 

Wingate has been adept defensively all year long; the Bulldogs lead the nation in defensive field goal percentage (35.7 percent).

"This is the toughest possible scenario to get back on the winning side of the ball (the combination of breaking out of a losing streak after a 17-day break at the league leader)," Benson said. "That being said, we had the best practice of our year. We go into the game confident because of that and looking forward to the challenge."

C-N has historically struggled with the Bulldogs offensively.  Of the six games of the Benson era where C-N has shot worse than 35 percent from the field, three have come against Wingate.  The Eagles connected on 34 percent of their shots in a 63-52 home loss to Wingate last year.  The Bulldogs held the Eagles to 32.8 and 29.4 percent shooting in 63-52 and 71-46 losses, respectively, during Benson's first season at Mossy Creek.

"They play percentage defense with a team that really tries to protect from 15 feet and in," Benson said. "Deion Turman protects the rim very well. They defend  and rebound very well and that's their recipe for a victory."

The Eagles snapped a seven-game losing streak to the Bulldogs last year at Cuddy Arena with a 63-52 win.  Carson-Newman closed the game on an 11-2 run to take a 63-52 victory. 

The Bulldogs are paced by Ryan Daye. The junior is second in the SAC in scoring at 20.9 points per game.  He's gone for 30 points or more on four occasions this season.  Deion Turman leads the SAC in rebounding at 10.4 caroms a contest (that's 17th in the nation). 

"Daye's a very special player," Benson said. "Our guys will have to be aware of where he's at. We'll keep an eye on him throughout." 

The Eagles are paced by Antoine Davis (Rustburg, Va.), who's fifth in the league in scoring at 20.2 points per game.  Ish Sanders (Cleveland, Tenn.) averages 16.4 points but has been slumping of late. Over the last three games, Sanders is averaging 10.6 points per game (six below his career and is hitting just 30 percent of his shots (eight percentage points below his career average). He's also made just two of his last 21 threes (nine percent).

Wingate has been one of Sanders' more challenging opponents. The senior has been held to single digits three straight games versus the Bulldogs dating back to his sophomore season. 

C-N and Wingate tip at 4 p.m. from Cuddy Arena. Pregame coverage on the Eagle Sports Network begins at 3:45 with the Countdown to Tipoff on 106.3 ESPN Radio the Zone (WPFT-FM, Sevierville) and online at cneagles.com/live. 

-CN-

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