Steady Lady Eagles bury Bears
January 15, 2022

Steady Lady Eagles bury Bears

HICKORY, N.C. – Leading by as many as 15 points, Carson-Newman stymied a second-half Lenoir-Rhyne surge to win its fourth consecutive contest 81-70 Saturday at Shuford Gym in South Atlantic Conference action.

VIDEO: Mike Mincey Interview

VIDEO: Braelyn Wykle Interview

HICKORY, N.C. – Leading by as many as 15 points, Carson-Newman stymied a second-half Lenoir-Rhyne surge to win its fourth consecutive contest 81-70 Saturday at Shuford Gym in South Atlantic Conference action.

"I wasn't happy with how we came out in the third quarter," Carson-Newman coach Mike Mincey said. "Our energy was low. We subbed out four of the five and again I think our bench gave us a lot of energy to get that lead back up a little bit. LR played well today. They shot the ball better than they normally do. It was a grind it out kind of game. I was glad we were able to score enough points to hold them. We outscored them and we got a road win."

Carson-Newman (13-3, 11-2) takes down Lenoir-Rhyne (4-8, 3-7) for the seventh straight meeting and the 11th time in the last 12 meetings. It is the fourth straight victory in Hickory.

Braelyn Wykle (Greeneville, Tenn.) registered her 37th career 20-point scoring night finishing with 28 points going 10-for-22 from the field with five trifectas adding five rebounds, three steals and three assists. The junior vaulted past three players on the school's all-time scoring list to move in 13th.

"I really haven't been shooting very good the past couple games so I knew I had to come out and shoot a little better at least," Wykle said. "It started early. We have played a lot on the road. I got a lot of rest and had to get my mind right."

Addison Byrd (Nashville, Tenn.) posted the ninth double-digit scoring effort of her senior year finishing with 15 points on seven of 11 shooting. The senior passed Ashley Tipton for the No. 24 slot on the school's scoring ledger.

Skylar Boshears (Lafollette, Tenn.) finished with 10 points making four of seven from the field. Lindsey Taylor (Maryville, Tenn.) added nine points and eight boards while Abby Wilson (Kingston, Tenn.) chipped in four points, six assists and five steals.

The Lady Eagles forced 23 turnovers in the game turning that into 22 points off of those giveaways. For the game, the Orange and Blue finished with 48 percent shooting from the floor making nine of 11 at the free-throw line.

After the teams traded early surges, Carson-Newman flipped a 10-6 deficit into a 21-12 advantage behind a 15-2 bursts, the last 10 points coming unanswered. Wykle carried the load for much of the first scoring 13 points with her club holding a 23-18 edge after 10 minutes.

Behind 60 percent shooting in the second stanza, the Lady Eagles built up a 13-point lead going into the locker by holding the Bears without points over the final 2:43 of the half closing on a 12-4 to record its fourth-largest halftime lead of the year.

Brandi Hudson scored the first nine points of the second half to get the Bears within four as C-N's scoring drought reached nearly four minutes spanning the half. With the margin at four with 4:44 to go in the period, C-N closed the frame on a 13-5 run to expand the margin to a dozen at 64-52 going into the final quarter.

Neither team scored more than four points in a row over the final 10 minutes as C-N shot 5-for-14 from the field but buried seven of eight at the charity stripe to maintain the double-figure separation.

Emily Harman and Hudson combined to score 42 of Lenoir-Rhyne's 70 points with Harman leading the way with 25 points, nine rebounds, seven assists and three steals. Hudson tallied 17 points and six boards. Tilda Lindstrom was the only other Bear in double figures finishing with 10 points in 17 minutes.

The Lady Eagles return to Holt Fieldhouse on Monday at noon against Coker. Broadcast coverage airs on the Eagle Sports Network 15 minutes before tip with "The AEC Countdown to Tip-Off".

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