Men's Basketball Southern Conference

WCU Men's Basketball Wins 86-69 Over Ottawa

Ottawa, Ontario - Junior guard Kevin Martin scored 37 points, while adding seven rebounds and six steals, to lead the Western Carolina men's basketball team to an 86-69 victory over the University of Ottawa late Tuesday night at Montpetit Hall. With the win, the Catamounts improve to 3-0 on their Canadian trip.

Martin scored 27 points in the first half, giving the Catamounts a 46-28 lead at the break. The Zanesville, Ohio, native was 5-of-5 from 3-point range and 4-of-4 at the free throw line. Overall, Martin was 12-of-17 from the field, 6-of-7 from 3-point range and 7-of-7 at the line. Sophomore David Berghoefer and Canadian native Corey Muirhead added 11 and 10 points, respectively, for the Cats.

"We played outstanding in the first half, building an 18-point lead," said WCU head coach Steve Shurina. "We played great defense and shot it well. We built a 22-point lead in the second half, which Ottawa cut to six. We had some good spurts and were able to pull away for the win.

"Kevin Martin was terrific. He was unstoppable offensively and he had six steals with seven rebounds. James Johnson was solid in his 34 minutes, while Corey (Muirhead) and Alex Osipovitch played well too.

"We were disappointed that this was the first team to shoot over 40 percent against us, but, overall, it was a very good performance."

Johnson, who was the only Catamount to play over 26 minutes, scored eight points with six assists and only two turnovers. Muirhead added seven rebounds to go with his 10 points, while Osipovitch had six points and six rebounds. Terrence Woodyard and Jared Outing each contributed five rebounds as WCU held a 46-33 advantage on the boards.

Ottawa was led by Curtis Shakespeare and Marco Jovic, who scored 17 and 12 points, respectively.

Western will return to action on Aug. 14 (Thursday) versus an All-Star team comprised of Montreal natives. The Cats will wrap up the tour on Aug. 16 versus the Canadian National Team. The following is the lead story on www.basketball.ca, which is the official website of the Canadian National teams:

Steve Nash To Lead Canada Versus Western Carolina

Canada Basketball officially announced today that two-time National Basketball Association All-Star and Dallas Mavericks point guard Steve Nash will play in the Senior Men's National Team's exhibition game against the University of Western Carolina in Guelph on Saturday, August 16th. The opening tip-off at the W.F. Mitchell Athletics Centre, located on the campus of the University of Guelph, is scheduled for 3:00 p.m.

"Saturday's exhibition game will be the final opportunity for fans of Team Canada to cheer on the Senior Men's squad before they leave for the Olympic Qualification Tournament in Puerto Rico," said Leslie Dal Cin, Executive Director of Canada Basketball. "We are absolutely delighted that this game is taking place in the city of Guelph, since it is such a hotbed for basketball in our country".

After Saturday's game, fans will have the opportunity to attend a post-game barbeque with all the members of the Canadian Senior Men's National Team. The barbeque, which will be held 30 minutes after the game, will take place outside the W.F. Mitchell Athletics Centre at the University of Guelph.