Coker’s defense stifles C-N in SAC title game
March 7, 2026

Coker’s defense stifles C-N in SAC title game

ROCK HILL, S.C. – Carson-Newman (21-10) ran into an impressive Coker (25-6) defense in Saturday’s South Atlantic Conference Women’s Basketball Championship game, falling 60-46 at the Rock Hill Sports and Events Center.

VIDEO: Highlights

VIDEO: Mike Mincey Interview

VIDEO: Jennifer Sullivan Interview

ROCK HILL, S.C. – Carson-Newman (21-10) ran into a stifling Coker (25-6) defense in Saturday's South Atlantic Conference Women's Basketball Championship game, falling 60-46 at the Rock Hill Sports and Events Center.

The Lady Eagles were held to a season-low 46 points on just 31 percent shooting. C-N made just four three-pointers as well.

"Obviously we didn't play well early, couldn't find the bottom of the net," Carson-Newman head coach Mike Mincey said. "We made a point that we didn't want to let them get away from us. I felt like in the first two games we won, we made plays to take leads and extend things. We weren't able to do that today."

Despite the loss, Carson-Newman placed a duo on the SAC's All-Tournament team in Mattie Nuckolls and Jennifer Sullivan. Nuckolls averaged just under 17 points in three tournament games, while Sullivan poured in seven threes and averaged more than 15 per game.

The first quarter featured mini scoring runs for each team. Coker started the game on a 9-2 scoring run. Carson-Newman would answer. A 7-0 scoring burst led by Emily Gonzalez (Lenoir City, Tenn.) and Jennifer Sullivan (Knoxville, Tenn.) tied the game at nine with 2:46 left in the first. Coker scored six of the final eight points to lead by four after one quarter.

The early moments of quarter two were back and forth. C-N drew within two on a Gonzalez layup, but Coker answered right back. Kristynn Knight and Shawnteanna Tillman led Coker on a 9-0 run to help the Cobras lead by 11 at intermission.

Coker led by double digits for the entire third quarter. The lead got to 16 with 73 seconds left, but Karli Haworth (Maryville, Tenn.) drilled consecutive triples in the final 45 seconds to make it a 10-point game after three quarters.

Two Mattie Nuckolls (Chatsworth, Ga.) free throws brought the Lady Eagles within single digits for the first and only time of the second half. Coker would ultimately put the game away with a 12-0 scoring run over two and a half minutes, a run that started and ended with Tillman triples.

Carson-Newman's defense held the Cobras to no points in the final six minutes, but it only scored three baskets during the game's final stretch to lost by 14. The two teams combined to miss their final 11 shots and neither side scored in the final three minutes and 29 seconds.

The conference's player of the year had her best performance of the tournament in the title game. She made five of her ten triples and led all scorers with 23. She was more efficient from three (5-10) than from two (3-12) in the game.

Emily Gonzalez (Lenoir City, Tenn.) led Carson-Newman with 11 points on four of eight shooting. Sullivan also made four field goals for nine points. Nine of the ten Lady Eagles that played scored.

The rebounding battle was squarely in favor of Coker all game long. The Cobras outrebounded C-N 49-28 and held a 14-5 advantage on the offensive glass. Those extra chances led to a 12-2 advantage in second chance points.

Despite missing its final six shots of the game, Coker shot still 39 percent. Three other Cobras scored in double-figures in the win.

Carson-Newman has been the number five seed in each of the first two Southeast Region rankings. The Lady Eagles will await their NCAA Tournament seeding in tomorrow's Selection Show at 10:30 p.m. on NCAA.com

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