February 7, 2009
 MARS HILL, N.C. - Danny Sanders scored 24 points and pulled down five rebounds to lead Mars Hill to a 93-65 win over Carson-Newman Saturday afternoon in Stanford Area. MHC improved to 14-7 overall and 5-6 in the SAC while the Eagles fell to 6-14 on the season and 3-6 in the conference.
Sanders (Shelby, N.C.) was 11-22 from the floor and added three assists. Akeene Coakley (Mount Pleasant, S.C.) came off the bench to score 16 points and pull down nine rebounds while P.J. Gore (North Myrtle Beach, S.C.) was the only other Lion in double figures with 12 points.
Joey Cameron (Tuskegee, Ala.) led C-N with 14 points and seven rebounds. Tray Okoth (Richmond, Va.) and Jesse McMurray (Weber City, Va.) scored 11 and 10 points in the loss, respectively.
The first 13 minutes of the game were closely played. Sanders hit a shot at the elbow with 6:53 left in the first half and the Lions never trailed again. Mars Hill's largest lead in the first stanza came as the half ended when Stoney Polite (Morganton, N.C.) hit a long shot from behind the arc as the buzzer sounded to send the teams into the locker room at halftime with the Lions ahead, 56-41.
The second half belonged to the Lions. Sanders hit a trey with 10:58 left in the contest and the Lions would maintain a 20+ advantage the remainder of the contest. The Lions' led by as many as 27 points at the 7:56 mark after Jarred Pickering (Queensland, Australia) hit a layup. MHC cruised to the 28-point victory. The scoring margin tied a season best. MHC out scored North Greenville by 28 points (101-73) earlier this season on December 3, 2008.
MHC won the rebound battle, 50-36, scored 64 points in the paint, 37 off Eagle miscues, 34 off the break and received 43 points off their bench. The Lions hit 49.4% (42-85) from the floor in the win.
Boxscore...
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