Wofford 68, UNC Asheville 42
ASHEVILLE, N.C. - The Wofford men's basketball team defeated UNC Asheville 68-42 in a rare Monday afternoon game at the Justice Center. The Terriers were up six at the half, but came alive in the second half and outscored the Bulldogs by twenty to pull away for the victory.
Wofford is 7-6 overall, while UNC Asheville is 3-7 overall. Noah Dahlman led the Terriers with 19 points and twelve rebounds, his third double-double of the season. Twelve Wofford players scored in the game. Asheville was led by Chris Stephenson with nine points and Sean Smith with six rebounds.
"We knew this game could be a problem as a trap," said head coach Mike Young. "It is a sign of nice internal leadership that we came out and went toe-to-toe with them. We were able to flatten out noses in the second half and get it done. Terry Martin and Tim Johnson did a great job in the post. We had another strong day on the offensive glass and there were a lot of positives."
The Terriers scored first and built a 24-14 lead with six minutes left in the half. The Bulldogs then went on an 8-0 run to pull with two points at 24-22 at the three minute mark. Wofford was able to score the final four points of the half for a 28-22 lead at the break. The Terriers were only 11-of-37 in the first half (29.7%), with a majority of the misses coming from under the basket.
UNC Asheville pulled within two at 30-28 two minutes into the second half before the Terriers put together a 9-1 run for a 39-29 lead after a three pointer by Brad Loesing at 14:45. Wofford used a dunk by Kevin Giltner and a lay-up by Tim Johnson to increase the advantage to 45-31 with 11:50 remaining in the half.
Wofford built a 49-33 lead with under nine minutes to play after a put-back by Terry Martin. Back-to-back three pointers by Cameron Rundles increased the Terrier lead to 58-35 at 4:51 in the second half. In the final four minutes, Wofford was able to keep the lead for a 68-42 win.
Wofford shot 38.0 percent from the floor and 28.6 percent from behind the arc. From the free throw line, the Terriers were 66.7 percent. The Bulldogs shot 37.0 percent overall and were 16.7 percent from beyond the arc. Wofford finished with a 43-35 lead in rebounds and the Bulldogs committed 24 turnovers in the game.
After a short break, Wofford will return to action on December 29 and 30 at the Cable Car Classic in Santa Clara, California.
Davidson 62, Hofstra 51
NEW YORK - Jake Cohen posted 18 points, six rebounds and four blocked shots to lead Davidson to a 62-51 men's basketball victory over Hofstra in the Holiday Festival at Madison Square Garden Monday night.
Cohen was 6-for-13 from the floor and 6-for-7 from the free-throw line and added an assist and a steal for the Wildcats (4-8). Will Archambault posted 10 points, seven rebounds, two assists and two steals, while Steve Rossiter collected a game-high 11 rebounds to go along with eight points. Bryant Barr chipped in eight points off the bench.
The Wildcats won it at the free-throw line, holding off a late Hofstra charge by hitting 9-of-11 in the last 4:58 of the game with Cohen knocking down three from the charity stripe.
Davidson's defense held Hofstra to 35.4 percent shooting from the floor for the game, and the Wildcats tallied a season-high nine blocked shots. Davidson also controlled the boards and had a 47-34 edge on the glass.
Chaz Williams led the Pride (7-5) with 14 points, and Charles Jenkins collected 11 points and six rebounds. Halil Kanacevic recorded 10 points, nine rebounds and four blocked shots.
Archambault broke a 27-27 tie early in the second half with consecutive 3-pointers, which sparked a 12-2 run that ended on a Rossiter jumper and a 39-29 Davidson cushion with 12:18 remaining.
The margin grew to as many as 13 points before Hofstra began chipping away in the game's final minutes. A 9-2 Pride run trimmed the margin to five points with 1:04 left, and Hofstra began to foul to stop the clock.
Rossiter hit two from the charity stripe, but Jenkins scored on the other end for the Pride. On their next possession, the 'Cats broke the press and found Cohen for a conventional 3-point play which made the score 60-52 with 45 seconds to go. After a defensive stop, JP Kuhlman hit a free throw for the final margin.
Davidson will open a four-game homestand with a 7 p.m. contest against Penn Dec. 28 in Belk Arena.
Chattanooga 84, Tennessee-Temple 52
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga men's basketball team got 53 points off the bench in an 84-52 win over in-town rival Tennessee Temple tonight. Chattanooga evened its record at 6-6 on the year while the Crusaders fell to 6-9.
The Mocs were led by junior DeAntre Jefferson's career-high 13 points and eight rebounds as five players recorded double figures. Chattanooga had 11 players score in the game and nine players saw at least 10 minutes of action.
The game started off slow with each team struggling from the floor. The Mocs hit just two of their first six attempts while TTU managed just two baskets in their first nine tries.
The Crusaders tied the game at six on a Johnnie McLawhord layup with 14:36 left. The Mocs then went on a 12-2 run to take an 18-8 lead. Chattanooga used that burst to pull ahead and lead for the rest of the game. The Mocs shot 56.7 percent in the first half, hitting 17-30 shots from the field. If it wasn't for 11 first-half turnovers, Chattanooga would have had an even bigger lead than their 46-28 margin at the break.
Tennessee Temple started the second half on a 6-0 run to cut the deficit to 46-34, but that was as close as it would get to a comeback. Sophomore Ricky Taylor sandwiched a jumper and a 3-pointer around a layup inside from Jefferson to go back up 53-34 with 14:53 left on the clock. The Mocs cruised to the win from that point on.
Junior Jeremy Saffore and senior Ty Patterson were the only starters to reach double figures, scoring 11 and 12 points, respectfully. All of Saffore's points came in the first 20 minutes of the game as he went 4-5 from the field and 3-5 from the FT line.
Junior Jeff Smith came off the bench to score 10 points in the game. He was perfect from the field in four tries, including 2-2 from 3-pt. range. Sophomore Ricky Taylor also added 10 points off the bench to help pace the Mocs.
Chattanooga shot a season-high 54.5 percent from the field, hitting 30-55 for the game. The Mocs did commit 21 turnovers, their highest in six games. However, UTC held the Crusaders to just 29.5 percent shooting for the game, including 17.9 percent (5-28) from 3-pt. range.
The Mocs are now off until the annual Dr Pepper Classic next Tuesday and Wednesday, December 29-30 in the McKenzie Arena. Morgan State and Eastern Kentucky match up in the opening game at 6 p.m., on Tuesday followed by Chattanooga and Long Island at 8 p.m. The consolation game on Wednesday is at 6 p.m., with the championship game at 8 p.m.
South Carolina 81, Furman 57
COLUMBIA, S.C. -- South Carolina shot 64.5 percent from the field in the second half and Sam Muldrow scored all of his game-high 16 points over the final 20 minutes as the Gamecocks downed the Paladins 81-57 in men's basketball action Monday evening at the Colonial Life Arena.
The victory improved the South Carolina to 8-3 on the season, while Furman dropped its fourth straight game to slip to 5-5.
Leading 35-34 with 15:54 remaining, South Carolina reeled off a 28-5 run over the next seven minutes to open up a 63-39 cushion and put away the Paladins. Ramon Galloway buried three three-pointers to key the decisive run as the Gamecocks forced Furman into nine turnovers during the run, including five straight miscues.
Muldrow connected on 8-of-11 shots to tally 16 points while Devan Downey collected 16 points, eight assists and seven steals. Lakeem Jackson, 5-of-5 from the field, and Galloway tallied 15 points apiece. South Carolina made 20-of-31 second half field goals and shot 52.5 percent (31-59) for the game despite hitting only 6-of-19 three-point attempts. The Gamecocks notched 16 steals and forced 24 Furman turnovers.
Amu Saaka scored 14 points on 5-of-13 shooting and Jordan Miller added 13 points to lead the Paladins. Freshman Colin Reddick grabbed a team-best seven rebounds to help Furman to a 36-31 edge on the boards. The Paladins shot just 32.7 percent (18-55) from the floor and connected on just 4-of-15 three-point attempts.
Furman erased an early 16-8 deficit with an 18-7 run to grab a 26-23 lead late in the first half before the Gamecocks finished the first period on a 5-0 spurt to take a 28-26 lead at intermission. The Paladins tied the game twice in the opening minutes of the second half before South Carolina's pressure allowed the Gamecocks to pull away.
Furman will be off for a week before returning to action on December 28, at the Golden Bear Classic in Berkeley, Calif. The Paladins open the four-team tournament next Monday against UC Santa Barbara at 8:00 p.m. ET. On Tuesday, the Paladins will face the winner or loser of Monday's game between Utah Valley and host California.
Dayton 65, Appalachian State 49
DAYTON, Ohio - A pair of Marcus Wright free throws eliminated a 10-point deficit and tie the game at 33-33 early in the second half, but Dayton took over with a 10-0 run and held on for a 65-49 win on Monday.
UD took an early lead in the game, as the Appalachian (7-5) shooters cooled off following a three-game winning streak and hit just 39.1 percent of first-half field goals. UD used that advantage to go up 22-12 just eight minutes into the game.
A late ASU run pulled the score to within three points at halftime, however, at 32-29.
The Apps then opened the second half with an Andre Williamson dunk and the Wright free throws to knot the score. The Dayton native finished with a career-high 16 rebounds in just 16 minutes on the floor.
Williamson's 16 rebounds were easily the most in the game, as Dayton's Devin Searcy and Paul Williams hauled in seven apiece. ASU was out-rebounded for just the second time in 12 games this season, 38-35. Donald Sims' four boards were the second-most on the team.
Dayton missed three of its top four scorers as the trio all suffered injuries in UD's Saturday game. Conversely, ASU's top four scorers were limited to four second-half points, all provided by Kellen Brand. Brand added three of the team's 10 assists. Sims scored all 13 of his points in the first half while fellow starters Jeremi Booth and Isaac Butts were a combined 0-for-4 on the game.
Wright shined coming off of the bench and scored nine of ASU's 20 second-half points. The sophomore guard finished with a season-best 15 points on 5-of-10 shooting.
The Apps (7-5) shot 35.6 percent from the floor for the game and 40 percent from beyond the arc. The Flyers didn't fare much better at 38.6 percent but managed 17 second chance points to ASU's four.
Dayton's (9-2) Mickey Perry finished with 15 points while Chris Wright added 14, as the Flyers won their 26th consecutive home game.
The Mountaineers take a nine-day break for the holidays before closing out the three-game road trip at Campbell on Dec. 30.
Houston 81, The Citadel 58
HOUSTON - Freshman Harrison DuPont shared the stage with Houston native Cameron Wells as the two combined for 14 points each, leading The Citadel in scoring, despite a 81-58 loss to Houston at Hofheinz Pavalion on Monday evening. DuPont doubled his previous career-high, knocking down 6-of-10 shots from the field, while hauling down three rebounds. Sophomore Cosmo Morabbi rounded out double-digit scorers with 12 points, all from beyond the arc, knotting his career high (four) for the fourth different time.
"We expected big things out of Harrison (DuPont) coming into the season," said Head Coach Ed Conroy. "The nose injury that he suffered in the fall practice really set him back, but he has had a good group of practices the last few weeks. He still needs to work out a few kinks offensively, but I loved his aggressiveness and the fact that there is no back down in him."
The Citadel (6-7) hit 15-of-33 (45.5%) en route to scoring 35 points in the second half of action. Morrabi was a large part of the offensive threat, scoring all 12 of his points, while Wells added 11 second half points. Teammate Joe Wolfinger manned the paint to finish with 10 rebounds, two shy of his season-high against Kenyon College (Nov. 13).
Aubrey Coleman, the leading scorer in NCAA Division I, finished with 26 points and 10 caroms in the victory. Coleman was a perfect 12-for-12 from the charity stripe and finished 7-for-17 from the floor. Teammate Kelvin Lewis tallied 20 points and stretched the floor by virtue of his four 3-pointers. Center Maurice McNeil grabbed 16 rebounds, 10 on the defensive glass, to give the Cougars a 39-37 edge on the boards. Houston improves to 6-3 on the season.
In similar fashion to the opening half with Texas A&M, the Bulldogs struggled over the course of the first 10 minutes to find their offensive rhythm. Trailing 22-4 at the 9:51 mark, a pair of 3-pointers by Austin Dahn and Harrison DuPont put The Citadel within striking distance.
The two teams traded baskets over the next three minutes until Houston pieced together a 9-2 run in 2:05 to extend their advantage to 34-17. The Citadel responded with a pair of buckets by DuPont and Wells to close out the half trailing 38-23.
Offensively the Bulldogs knocked down 8-of-29 attempts (27.6%), including 5-of-12 from 3-point range. The Cougars countered with a 13-of-28 (46.4%) performance, outscoring The Citadel 17-4 in the paint. Houston was led in scoring by Lewis' 11 points.
The Citadel return to play on Saturday, January 2nd when they travel to Savannah State to take on the Tigers. Tip is set for 7 p.m. in Savannah, Ga.