Wofford 75, UT-Pan American 70
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. ? The Wofford College men’s basketball team won their first game of the season with a 75-70 win over UT Pan American at Klune Arena in the first game of the Reggie Minton Air Force Classic. Noah Dahlman and Tim Johnson had double-doubles for the Terriers.
Wofford is 1-2 overall and UT Pan American is 1-3 on the season. The Terriers were led by Noah Dahlman with 21 points and 13 rebounds, while Tim Johnson added 13 points and eleven boards. UT Pan American was led by Nathan Hawkins with 22 points and eight rebounds.
The Broncs got on the board first, but after two free throws by Noah Dahlman, the Terriers had an 8-4 lead. The Broncs responded with two three’s by Ben Smith to take a 10-8 lead. At the ten minute mark, UT Pan American had a one-point lead. Jason Dawson hit a three to regain the lead for Wofford. The Terriers built an eight point lead after a three by Corey Godzinski at 4:41 in the half.
Right before the half, Kevin Giltner hit two free throws for Wofford and the Terriers had a 33-27 lead at the break.
In the first six minutes of the second half, the Terriers lead remained two possessions. Then, three pointers by Jason Dawson, Matt Estep and Junior Salters on a 9-0 run gave Wofford a 51-35 lead.
The Terriers kept a ten-point lead until the five minute mark. At that point, the Broncs were able to 8-2 run to cut the lead to 63-59 with 3:08 on the clock. The final two minutes of the game became a free throw shooting contest, which was won by the Terriers to take the 75-70 win.
Wofford shot 47 percent from the floor and 43 percent from three-point range. The Terriers were 76.9% from the line. Wofford had a 40-27 advantage on the boards.
The game marked the first ever meeting between the two teams. Wofford has out-rebounded their opponents in two of the three games this season. The 21 points by Noah Dahlman were a career-high.
Wofford will remain in Colorado Springs and face the Air Force Academy at 7:00 pm ET on Sunday. The Terriers will open the home slate on November 25 against UNC Asheville.
Niagara 95, Appalachian State 80
NIAGARA, N.Y. - The last time Appalachian State and Niagara University met on the hardwood the game wasn't decided until the final second. This time, it didn't take the full 40 minutes but the result was the same as the Mountaineers fell, 95-80, at Niagara's Gallagher Center Saturday afternoon.
The come-from-behind win, Niagara's (2-1) fifth-straight over the Mountaineers, was fueled Bilal Benn and Tyrone Lewis' 22 points each. Appalachian (1-2) was led by 20 points each from Donald Sims and Kellen Brand. Josh Hunter led all players on the glass with 11 rebounds.
The Mountaineers jumped out to a quick 13-3 lead with five points from Butts and Abraham in the first four minutes of the contest. The defense kept the Eagles silent for nearly three minutes to build up a 17-5 lead with 14 minutes to play before a 5-0 NU spurt evened things a bit.
A three-pointer from Sims stalled the brief run, but the Eagles kept chipping away and the lead and outscored ASU 21-12 over the final eight minutes of the half to briefly tie the game before halftime. However, another Sims three-pointer, this one at the buzzer, gave the Apps a 46-43 halftime lead. Brand's 16 first-half points, the majority on driving layups, helped to keep an otherwise energized NU squad from taking the lead in the first-half shootout that saw both teams shoot 58 percent from the field.
Niagara kept up the pressure to start the second half and took its first lead since the opening minute of the game, 50-48, on a three-point play from Demetrius Williamson less than two minutes in. The squads went back and forth until NU used a 9-0 run that started with 11 minutes to play and resulted in a 67-59 NU lead with nine minutes to play thanks to five points from Benn.
Four-straight points from Sims brought ASU back within striking distance but a Lewis dunk promptly reasserted Niagara's control as the Eagles ran their lead out to as many as 17 points en route to the 15-point victory as they outscored ASU 52-34 in the second half.
The Mountaineers will travel back from Niagara Falls with a full week to recover from Saturday's loss and prepare for next Saturday's home contest against Campbell University.
Central Arkansas 73, UNC Greensboro 60
CONWAY, Ark. ? Junior forward Mikko Koivisto scored eight of his 24 points in a late surge, but it wasn’t enough as UNC Greensboro lost on the road to Central Arkansas, 73-60, Saturday night in men’s basketball action at the Farris Center.
UNCG held Central Arkansas to just one field goal in nearly a five minute span to climb back into it late, turning a 21-point deficit into just a 10-point margin with 3:45 to play. Koivisto’s drive to the bucket with 2:38 to play pulled the Spartans to within single-digits, 66-57, for the first time since the closing seconds of the first half.
After UCA missed a three-pointer with the shot clock winding down, Ben Stywall drove the lane for UNCG and got fouled with 1:56 to go. But he missed both free throws and Mitch Rueter drained a three-pointer on the other end to put it out of reach.
Junior guard Montel Smith added 11 points and Ben Stywall had nine points and eight rebounds for UNCG (1-2). The Spartans, however, could not overcome 23 turnovers, including 16 in the first half. It was UNCG’s third consecutive game this season with 20 or more turnovers. UNCG also didn’t help itself at the free throw line, shooting just 12-of-24 from the stripe.
Mike Pouncy had 26 points to lead all scorers, shooting 11-for-14 from the floor. He was the only Bear in double figures. UCA (2-1) shot 49.2 percent from the floor for the game and turned the 23 UNCG turnovers into 26 points.
The Spartans lost Landon Clement to his second foul six minutes into the contest, the 10th foul whistled on the two teams to that point. Clement came into the game as UNCG’s leading scorer at 19.5 points per game this season. With Clement out, UNCG hung tough as neither team was able to open up a lead of more than four. Clement came back five minutes later, but wound up the night scoreless.
The first separation of the game occurred coming out of the eight-minute media timeout. Central Arkansas ran off five straight points ? a trey by Marcus Pillow and a layup by Pouncy ? to begin an 11-1 run and open up a 28-18 lead. In fact, Pouncy had 13 of the Bears’ first 28 points to surpass his previous season-high of eight.
With 16 turnovers in the first half, though, the Spartans were the own worst enemy, trailing 35-23 at the intermission.
The Bears opened their lead up to as much as 20 early in the second half, although UNCG made a couple of runs to try get back into it. Two Ben Stywall free throws cut the margin to 14, 52-38, with 9:34 to play. But a quick 7-0 spurt, capped off by Dewan Clayborn’s three-pointer, gave UCA a 21-point lead with 7:52 to play.
Just went it looked like UCA had the game put away, eight points by Koivisto sparked a 12-2 run that got UNCG back to within 61-50 with just under six minutes to play. But the Spartans couldn’t quite get over the hump from there.
The Citadel 78, Cincinnati Christian 55
CHARLESTON, S.C. ? Three Bulldogs scored in double-digits to lead The Citadel past Cincinnati Christian, 78-55. Cameron Wells led the Bulldogs with a game-high 20 points. Demetrius Nelson scored 17 and grabbed four boards, while Zach Urbanus had 14 points and led the Bulldogs with seven rebounds.
The Eagles scored the first points of the game after Chris Scott nailed a 3-pointer with 0:00 left on the shot clock. Freshman Cosmo Morabbi, who earned the first start of his collegiate career, got the Bulldogs their first points of the game after nailing two free throws to put the Bulldogs down by one. Daniel Eykyn followed up with a 3-pointer to give the Bulldogs the lead.
Trenton Calloway responded with a jumper in the lane to tie the score at five apiece before Wells responded with a pull-up jumper to put the Bulldogs back on top. A 5-5 tie would be the last tie of the game and the Bulldogs managed to keep the Eagles from taking another lead.
The Citadel was up by as many as nine with 13:32 left in the half after Austin Dahn hit a free throw. The Eagles managed to cut the lead to six with a 3-pointer by Sheldon McNeil, but Urbanus answered to put two more points on the board. Cincinnati Christian was able to get within two at 23-21, but a Bulldog run would put the Bulldogs up by 11. The Eagles continued to chop at the lead, getting within five before the Bulldogs worked to increase the lead.
Two foul shots from Wells put the Bulldogs up by seven. A 3-pointer by Urbanus increased the lead to 10 before back-to-back foul shots by Urbanus put the Bulldogs up by 12. Cincinnati Christian put two more points on the board after Calloway hit two free throws. The Citadel went up by 15 with a jumper by Morabbi, but Scott hit a jumper with 0:27 left in the half to drop the Bulldog lead to 13.
The Bulldogs dominated on both offense and defense throughout the first half, shooting 88.2 percent from the foul line and 46.2 percent from the field. At the end of the half, the Bulldogs were up by 13 points with a score of 44-31. Nelson led the Bulldogs at the half with 12 points, while Urbanus had 11. Wells scored 16 of his 20 points in the second half.
In the second half, the Bulldogs carried the momentum from the first half, scoring the first bucket of the half off a jumper in the paint by Nelson. Wells followed with a drive to the basket for a layup to put the Bulldogs up, 48-31. The Eagles scored at the 18:04 mark with a 3-pointer by Scott. Jake Santel went to the foul line to shoot three, making 2-of-3, to put the Eagles within 12. A layup by Calloway with 16:17 on the clock cut the lead to 10.
The Bulldogs refused to let the Eagles get back in the game. Matt Clark nailed a 3-pointer from the corner to put The Citadel up by 13, but the Eagles answered right back with a jump shot by Vondaze Thornton. Back-to-back
free throws and jumper by Wells put the Bulldogs back up by 15.
As the second half went on, the Bulldogs continued to dominate. The Eagles only managed to get within nine in the second half after a layup by Nathanael Harney made the score, 61-52. A nine-point deficit would be the closest the Eagles would come. The Bulldogs scored 12 straight points before the Eagles would score again. Cincinnati Christian got back on the board with two free throws by Drew Ellis.
Cincinnati Christian would score again with a free throw by Scott, which gave the Eagles their last bucket of the game. With 2:24 left in regulation, the Bulldogs’ defense refused to let the Eagles score anymore. The Citadel
scored four more points off a jumper by Matt Roberts, a free throw by John Brown and two foul shots by Phillip Pandak to give the Bulldogs a 78-55 victory.
The Eagles were led by Harney with 12 points and Scott with 11 points. Calloway led the team in rebounds with five. Cincinnati Christian shot 70.6 percent from the foul line and 46.7 percent from the behind the arc. The Citadel finished the game shooting 74.2 percent from the stripe and 47.1 percent from the field.
The Citadel will be back in action on Tuesday, Nov. 25 when they battle the Buccaneers of Charleston Southern at 7:00 p.m. at the North Charleston Coliseum. Tuesday’s game will be the Bulldogs’ last game before they head to Cancun, Mexico to conclude the Cancun Challenge Tournament.
U UT-Martin 82, Elon 65
MARTIN, Tenn. -- Lester Hudson scored 20 of his game-high 29 points in the second half while Djero Riedewald recorded a double-double with 12 points and a contest-best 15 rebounds to lead the Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks to an 82-65 men's basketball victory over the Elon Phoenix from the Elam Center on Saturday night. UTM improved to 2-1 while Elon dropped to 1-2 on the season.
The Skyhawks netted the first eight points of the game before Elon got its first points from Adam Constantine with 15:31 to play in the first half. The Phoenix closed the gap to 8-6 when Ola Atoyebi put in a layup for two of his team-high 17 points with 14:22 to go in the period.
UTM built its edge back to six points when a Hudson three gave the Skyhawks a 15-9 lead with 11:20 left in the half. Elon again answered and closed to within two when Brett James drained a jumper off a Josh Bonney assist with 10:24 to go.
The Phoenix would never edge closer for the rest of the evening. Benzor Simmons nailed a three and Andres Irarrazabal put in a layup as UTM upped its lead to 20-13 with 8:24 on the clock. Atoyebi would hit a jumper with 7:56 left, but the Skyhawks went on a 17-5 run to close the half and grab a 37-20 advantage at the break.
In the final 20 minutes, Elon clawed back to within 13 points. The last time came when James hit a three-point bucket that closed the gap to 51-38 with 14:24 remaining in the game.
Drew Spradlin supplied 14 points for Elon, including 12 in the second half while James also finished with 14 markers. Spradlin and Atoyebi each ended the night with seven rebounds. Chris Long passed for seven assists.
For the Skyhawks, MJ Brown added 10 points. Hudson also had seven rebounds and six assists.