GREENEVILLE, Tenn. — Makayla Alvey knocked down all five of her 3-pointers to lead Carson-Newman to an 89-60 win over host Tusculum Wednesday night at Pioneer Arena in South Atlantic Conference women’s basketball action.
The Eagles (18-6, 15-5 SAC) knocked down 15 three-pointers including a dozen in after two quarters as C-N led 46-26 at halftime.
Alvey was perfect 5-of-5 from downtown as she finished with game-highs of 18 points and 10 rebounds. Teammate Tori Rutherford added 17 points while Lindsey Taylor contributed 14 markers as C-N completes the season-sweep over the Pioneers (8-16, 6-14 SAC).
Tusculum freshman Josie Horner led the Pioneers with a season-best 13 points off the bench. Carleigh Wilson and Abbi Douglas accounted for 11 points each, while Ni’Kiah Chesterfield, the conference’s top scorer was held to 10 markers on the night, nine points below her SAC-leading scoring average (19.0 ppg – 17th in NCAA II).
Carson-Newman raced out to a 20-6 lead in the first 5:56 of the contest thanks the six triples including a pair by Jennifer Sullivan. C-N would lead by as many as 17 in the opening frame and led 27-11 after the first 10-minute period.
With the Eagles up 30-13 in the second period, the Pioneers went on an 8-0 run which was capped off by back-to-back buckets from Wilson as TU trailed 30-21 with 6:55 left. But Carson-Newman went on an 11-0 run to take a 44-21 lead following two free throws from Abigail Johnson with 1:43 left in the half.
Ema Nagyova‘s three-pointer snapped the C-N run as the Eagles would take a 46-26 lead into the locker room.
Carson-Newman maintained their sizeable advantage throughout most of the third quarter and took its largest lead of the period at 60-35 at the 3:24 mark of the period.
Tusculum wouldn’t go away as the Pioneers went on a 10-0 run over the next 2:10 which included three-point plays from Chesterfield and Douglas as TU trailed 60-45. Rutherford ended the TU run with a pair of free throws as C-N led 62-45 heading to the final period.
Horner got the scoring started for the Pioneers in the fourth with a bucket as TU trailed 62-47. The Eagles went on an 8-2 spurt to push the lead back out to 21 at 70-49 after Sullivan’s layup with 7:54 left. Horner canned a jumper from the perimeter to cut the deficit under 20. But C-N would put the game out of reach with a 12-2 run to take an 82-53 lead with 4:49 remaining.
Carson-Newman recorded 26 assists on its 30 made field goals as the Eagles shot 43 percent from the floor and 15-of-30 from three-point territory. C-N also shot 14-of-18 from the free throw line and edged the Pioneers on the boards, 44-43. The Eagles also recorded 11 steals, while the Pioneers tallied six blocked shots including a season-best four by Chesterfield.
Tusculum returns to action next Wednesday when the Pioneers travel to Mars Hill for a 5:30 p.m. contest. TU posted a 78-74 win over the Lions in November at Pioneer Arena.
