C-N goes cold in road loss to #23 Coker
January 4, 2025

C-N goes cold in road loss to #23 Coker

No. 15/6 Carson-Newman (11-3, 8-2 SAC) shot a season-low 33.8 percent from the field in and suffered a 71-65 loss to No. 23 Coker (12-1, 8-1 SAC) on Saturday afternoon in Hartsville, South Carolina.

VIDEO: Mike Mincey Interview

HARTSVILLE, S.C. – No. 15/6 Carson-Newman (11-3, 8-2 SAC) shot a season-low 33.8 percent from the field in and suffered a 71-65 loss to No. 23 Coker (12-1, 8-1 SAC) on Saturday afternoon in Hartsville, South Carolina.

At halftime, Carson-Newman was shooting 44 percent. The second half was a completely different story as C-N went just 10-38 (26 percent) from the field in the second half. C-N made just 14 of its 32 layup attempts.

"They did a good job and played us super physical," Carson-Newman head coach Mike Mincey said. "They chased us off the three-point line and wanted us to beat them with twos. I think we made good reads and got to the rim a lot. But, on the road we didn't make enough of them to pull out a victory. You can't win games on the road if you miss that many layups."

It's just Coker's fourth ever win in the series and second at the Deloach Center, first since 2015.

Both teams got off to sluggish starts offensively. The two teams combined to go 3-14 to start the game and committed a combined 11 turnovers but C-N led 5-4 with 4:25 to play. Lindsey Taylor made a layup in the final seconds to make it a 12-11 Coker lead after the first period.

After C-N went ahead by four points early in the second period, Coker made four of its next five shots to gain a 22-20 lead with 4:56 to play in the half. After gaining that advantage, they never relinquished it again in the opening half and led by three at intermission.

Carson-Newman missed 12 straight shots early in the third quarter and saw Coker open up its largest lead of the game at 13 with 5:32 remaining in the quarter. The Cobras missed ten straight shots in the final four minutes of the third, but C-N still trailed by nine after the third period.

The Cobras extended their lead out to 14 points with 5:59 to play. C-N wouldn't go down without a fight. The Lady Eagles went on a pair of 6-0 scoring runs to draw within five points with two minutes to play. Coker's defense only let C-N make one more basket and made a free throw down the stretch to win 71-65.

Jennifer Sullivan (Knoxville, Tenn.) was Carson-Newman's leading scorer with 20 points on seven made field goals. All eight of her second half points came in the final four minutes of the contest. Lindsey Taylor (Maryville, Tenn.) was the only other double-figure scorer, going for 17 points and eight rebounds.

After 15 turnovers in the first half, C-N committed just five turnovers after halftime. The Lady Eagles scored 21 points off of Coker's 27 turnovers. It's Carson-Newman's first loss this season when scoring more points off of turnovers than its opponent.

Seven different Lady Eagles had multiple steals in the game.

Coker's Mya Wasswa scored a game-high 21 points on six of 11 shooting. Dasia Ferguson pitched in 17 while Kristyn Knight scored 14 points off the bench.

This 71-65 final score is not a scorigami and occurs for the third time in program history. The last time it was a 71-65 final was against Newberry on Dec 2, 2017.

Carson-Newman is back on the floor Wednesday evening for a rivalry showdown with Lincoln Memorial. Tipoff between the Lady Eagles and Railsplitters is set for 5:30 p.m. Coverage on the Eagle Sports Network begins at 5:15 with the AEC Countdown to Tipoff on MIX 105.5 (WSEV-FM, Sevierville) and online at cneagles.com/live.

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