C-N Comeback Falls Short, Bears Get 98-95 Win
Jan. 24, 2009
HICKORY, N.C. — A valiant second half comeback by the Carson-Newman men’s basketball team came up short Saturday night as the Eagles fell 98-95 to Lenoir-Rhyne in a South Atlantic Conference matchup at Shuford Memorial Gymnasium.
The Eagles erased a 53-47 halftime deficit to lead by as much as eight late in the ballgame at 80-72 with 9:14 remaining, but the Bears outscored C-N 26-15 the rest of the way, including a pair of made free throws by Josh Rudder with 0.8 seconds left to seal the win.
With the loss, the Eagles fall to 6-12 overall and 3-4 in the SAC. L-R improves its record to 9-8 overall and 4-3 in conference play.
The Eagles performed well offensively as they made 55.9 percent (33-of-59) of their shots, including a 12-of-23 effort from 3-point range. The Bears were just as productive as they shot 57.6 percent (34-of-59) from the field, including 6-of-12 from behind the arc.
Both teams had trouble taking care of the ball, as C-N committed 23 turnovers on the night and L-R had 24.
Zach Hyatte (Dayton, Tenn.) paced the Eagles with 15 points, while Bobby Guyton (Jesup, Ga.), Jared Stephens (Oak Ridge, Tenn.), Adam Plavich (Dalton, Ga.) and Jesse McMurray (Weber City, Va.) each had nine points in the loss.
Four Bears finished with double figures in scoring led by a 26-point effort from Elliott McDowell, who also had a game-high nine rebounds. Rudder tallied 16 points and dished out seven assists, while D.J. Blackmon and Jeff Thomas each scored 15 points in the win.
The first half went back and forth as the lead changed hands seven times in the first 12 minutes. A 3-pointer by Plavich with 18:01 left helped C-N build an early 9-4 advantage.
The Bears then went on a 6-0 run capped by a McDowell 3-pointer to give them a 10-9 lead.
The teams battled to a 27-27 tie before the Bears went on an 8-2 run to take a 35-29 lead on a Marcus Hodges layup at the 6:44 mark.
The Eagles were able to cut L-R’s lead down to one at 42-41 on a Kevin Hare jumper with 3:38 left on the clock, but the Bears closed out the half by outscoring C-N 11-6 to take a 53-47 lead into the locker room.
C-N came out on fire in the second half as it opened the final 20 minutes on an 8-1 run to take a 55-54 lead on a Guyton 3-pointer at the 17:28 mark.
The Eagles continued to bury shots from behind the arc as back-to-back threes by Andrew Johnson and Jared Stephens extended C-N’s lead to 63-56 with 16:36 remaining.
C-N held the lead for the next 9 minutes and five seconds before a pair of made free throws by Rudder tied the game at 81-81.
The lead then changed sides four times before a Blackmon layup with 3:20 remaining gave L-R the lead for good at 90-89.
C-N returns to the hardwood on Wednesday, Jan. 28 in a SAC tilt at Catawba. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. in Salisbury, N.C.
