Western Carolina 81, Eastern Kentucky 74
CULLOWHEE, N.C. - Four Catamounts scored in double figures for the second-consecutive game as Western Carolina was able to fend off Eastern Kentucky on Saturday for the 81-74 victory in the ESPN Sears BracketBusters game in the Ramsey Center.
The Catamounts led by as many as 18 points and held a double-digit advantage most of the afternoon, but the Colonels shot 59-percent from the field in the second half to draw within four, 76-72, inside the game's final 96 seconds on the fourth 3-pointer by Justin Stommes who led all scorers with 24 points.
On the ensuing possession after the Stommes triple, Richie Gordon was fouled as he drove to the basket before stepping to the line to hit a key free throw with 1:23 left. EKU then missed a pair of free throws and a 3-pointer attempt that allowed Mike Williams to seal the victory with four made free throws in the final minute of play.
Combined, WCU made 7-of-8 free throws in closing minutes to secure the victory, its sixth-straight on the season and 12th-consecutive at home.
Williams paced the squad with 18 points - his 24th double-figure scoring performance of the season -adding five assists and a pair of steals for the Catamounts. Freshman Brandon Boggs scored 16 points while Harouna Mutombo finished with 14, eclipsing the 1,000 career point plateau on the day. Mutombo is the 39th different Catamount to score 1,000-or-more points for the Purple & Gold. The Pickering, Ontario, native notched his 1,001st point inside the final 30 seconds of the opening stanza.
Gordon rounded out WCU's double-figure scorers by recording his third career double-double with 14 points and a career-high tying 10 rebounds with a solid all-around performance. The Atlanta, Ga., native shot 5-of-7 from the floor while swiping four steals and blocking three shots.
Western Carolina (15-13) only trailed once after EKU's Josh Daniel buried a 3-pointer early in the first half for a 3-2 Colonel lead. The Catamounts responded with a 25-to-6 run over the next eight minutes to grab an 18-point, 27-9, advantage at the 8:20 mark of the first half. Williams scored 10 of WCU's points during the run while Gordon added six.
The Catamounts carried a double-digit lead into the halftime break, 39-26.
Eastern Kentucky (15-13) steadily chipped away at the WCU lead in the second half, riding 6-7 guard Stommes who delivered 19 of his 24 points in the second half. His free throws with 5:47 left in the second half cut the WCU lead to single digits for the first time since the 5:31 mark in the first half.
With the lead dwindled to eight, WCU's Keaton Cole drained a 3-pointer to stretch it back to 11 with a pair of Williams charity tosses pushing the margin back to a dozen with four and a half to play. A long-range jumper by Stommes dropped the margin into single-digits for good at the 3:48 mark, with Eastern Kentucky clawing to within four on the final triple by the guard. But the Catamounts were able to score the win by making free throws down the stretch.
Perrin was the only other Colonel to reach double figures alongside Stommes, with Joshua Davis scoring nine for EKU.
Western Carolina returns to league action this week as it plays three Southern Conference games in five days. WCU will travels to UNC Greensboro to take on the Spartans on Monday night at 7:00 pm at the Greensboro Coliseum. The Catamounts defeated UNCG 83-73 back on Feb. 5 in Cullowhee. They then return home on Thursday to take on the first of two teams from the Lowcountry of South Carolina, The Citadel Bulldogs on Beach Night (Feb. 24) before concluding the regular season at home against the College of Charleston on Saturday, Feb. 26.
Furman 70, Samford 63
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Furman outscored Samford 15-1 over the final four minutes to rally past the Bulldogs for its 20th victory of the season with a 70-63 triumph in Southern Conference men's basketball action on Saturday at the Pete Hanna Center.
The win gives the Paladins (20-7, 12-4 SoCon) 20 victories for the first time since 1990-91 (20-9) and nine wins away from their home floor for the first time since the 1979-80 campaign. Samford dropped its fourth straight game to fall to 12-16 overall and 4-12 in conference play.
Trailing 62-55 following Josh Bedwell's trey with 4:08 left, Furman managed to make three of its final four field goal attempts and nine straight free throws down the stretch to complete the comeback. Brandon Sebirumbi ignited the run, scoring in the paint and finishing the three-point play at the foul line. After John Peterson made 1-of-2 free throws on Samford's possession, Sebirumbi drained a pair for Furman and Darryl Evans sliced to the basket for a lay-in to trim the lead to 63-62 following a Peterson turnover.
Gregg Wooten failed to convert on the front end of a one-and-one for Samford seconds later. Justin Dehm's three-point attempt to give Furman the lead missed, but Sebirumbi kept the Paladin possession alive with an offensive rebound and Evans found Amu Saaka for a slam as the shot clock ran down to put Furman ahead with 1:53 to play, 64-63.
Samford missed on long range jumpers on each of its next two trips down the floor and Jordan Miller connected on a pair of free throws to extend the Furman lead to 66-63 with 40 seconds left. On the other end of the floor, Miller swatted Wooten's driving layup into the hands of Evans and Miller and Evans each buried two free throws each in the final seconds as Furman scored the final 12 points to secure the win.
Samford, which led by as many as 14 points in the first half, shot 73.7 percent from the field in the opening 20 minutes to take a 37-28 lead into the break. Furman, on the strength of a four-point play from Saaka, exploded on a 10-0 run to open the second half as the Paladins grabbed their first lead of the night at 38-37 with 15:31 remaining. The lead changed hands six times over the final 16 minutes before Saaka's dunk gave Furman the lead for good with under two minutes to play.
Saaka connected on 7-of-10 field goal attempts, 4-of-6 from three-point range, to pace Furman with 23 points and nine rebounds. Sebirumbi scored 12 points, including a 6-for-7 effort at the foul line, while Miller added nine points. Colin Reddick contributed seven points and eight rebounds to help Furman to a 31-19 advantage on the glass.
Furman shot just 42.6 percent from the field, but made 23-of-27 free throws and scored 13 second chance points off 13 offensive rebounds.
Jeffrey Merritt paced Samford with 12 points and Bedwell added 11 by converting on 3-of-6 treys. The Bulldogs, 10-of-23 from three-point range, shot 53.7 percent from the floor, but only 36 percent after intermission.
College of Charleston 85, Vermont 70
CHARLESTON, S.C. - Senior Andrew Goudelock, sophomore Willis Hall and senior Donavan Monroe combined for 66 points to lead College of Charleston to an 85-70 rout of Vermont in an ESPN BracketBusters game held Saturday before a sell-out crowd at Carolina First Arena.
The Cougars (21-7), who have now won six-straight games, used a 25-0 first-half run to snap Vermont's 10-game winning streak which was the third-longest in the nation. Goudelock turned in a game-high 24 points, while Monroe had 20.
CofC led 14-11 when it scored the next 25 points for a 39-11 advantage, holding the America East Conference regular-season champion Catamounts (22-6), scoreless for 6:08. Hall scored 11 of his career-high 22 points, including seven in a row, during the outburst.
The Cougars had 21 assists, only eight turnovers and outscored Vermont 24-9 off turnovers. They also shot 54.8 percent from the floor (34-of-62) and never allowed the Catamounts into any type of rhythm.
CofC will host Samford (12-16, 4-12) in its regular-season home finale on Monday, Feb. 21 at 7 p.m. (ET) at Carolina First Arena.
Davidson 71, Presbyterian 65
CLINTON, S.C. - Nik Cochran led four Davidson players in double figures scoring with 14 points as the Wildcats fought off Presbyterian for a 71-65 men¹s basketball victory at the Templeton Center Saturday night.
Tom Droney scored a career-high 12 points, and De'Mon Brooks added 12 points and five rebounds for the 'Cats (15-13, 8-8 SoCon). Clint Mann had 10 points and five rebounds.
Pierre Miller led Presbyterian (12-17, 6-10) with 23 points, including 16 in the second half. Khalid Mutakabbir posted 12 points and five boards.
Davidson shot 53 percent for the game but allowed PC to shoot 51 percent, including 7-of-15 from 3-point range. The 'Cats had a 29-20 rebounding edge and scored 14 second-chance points in the game.
The Wildcats led 39-26 at halftime and had a double-digit lead most of the second frame, but PC was able to hang in the game. Walt Allen hit a conventional 3-point play, and Miller followed with consecutive triples as the Blue Hose scored nine points in 25 seconds to make the score 68-63 with 45 seconds left.
Brooks was fouled and hit 1-of-2 for Davidson, and the Wildcats got a defensive stop. Forced to foul again, PC chose Cochran this time, and the sophomore came through with two to make the score 71-63 with 14 seconds left. Miller got a layup with 11 seconds left for the final margin.
Holding a 20-18 lead in the first half, the Wildcats used a 14-3 run to open a 34-21 lead on a Jake Cohen putback with 2:04 left in the period. The 'Cats led by 10 points when Chris Czerapowicz hit a triple to beat the halftime buzzer and make the margin 13. The freshman scored the last five points of the period.
Davidson shot 55 percent in the period and was able to clean up its misses, getting 12 second-chance points off of six offensive boards.
The cushion grew to as many as 18 in the second frame before a 9-1 Blue Hose run made the score 47-38 midway through the half.
The Wildcats return to conference action by hosting Elon Thursday at 7 p.m.in Belk Arena.
Wofford 66, Ball State 61
SPARTANBURG, S.C. - The Wofford men's basketball team closed out the regular season home slate with a 66-61 win over Ball State on Saturday night in a Sears BracketBusters contest at Benjamin Johnson Arena. The Terriers led by ten at the half, but the Cardinals led by one point with 2:33 remaining before Noah Dahlman scored eight of Wofford's final ten points to earn the win.
Wofford is 16-12 on the season and 12-4 in the Southern Conference. Ball State is 15-11 overall on the year. The Terriers were led by Noah Dahlman with 21 points, while Tim Johnson recorded his third double-double of the season with eleven points and 13 rebounds. The Cardinals were led by Jarrod Jones with 13 points and Randy Davis and Jauwan Scaife with twelve points each.
The Cardinals scored first in the contest and took a 9-3 lead four minutes into play. Wofford regained the lead on a 9-0 that was capped by a three from Cameron Rundles for a 12-9 score with 13:17 on the clock. Ball State was able to take a 17-15 lead, but Wofford tied it and then a three by Jamar Diggs gave the Terriers a 20-17 advantage with 7:58 left in the half.
A bucket and free throw by Noah Dahlman at the 5:35 mark gave Wofford a 24-17 lead. A three by Cameron Rundles pushed the score to 27-19 with 4:29 left in the first half. Kevin Giltner added a three with 1:52 on the clock for a ten-point lead. The Cardinals added a bucket, but Tim Johnson scored with two seconds left to give Wofford the 34-24 lead at the half. The Terriers limited Ball State to only 28.1 percent from the floor in the first half.
Ball State opened the second half with a 13-2 run over the opening seven minutes to take a 37-36 lead. The game went back-and-forth over the next few minutes as the game was tied at 39, 41 and 43 before the Terriers pulled away at 50-43 after a three by Cameron Rundles at the 8:20 mark. The Cardinals answered with a 7-0 run to tie the game again at 50 with 5:57 left.
The game was tied at 54 and then at 56 with 2:47 remaining. The Cardinals took a 57-56 lead on a free throw with 2:33 left in the game. Jamar Diggs hit a bucket to give the Terriers back the lead at 58-57 with 2:22 on the clock. At that point, Noah Dahlman took over. He stole the ball from Ball State point guard Randy Davis and took the ball down court for a lay-up and added a free throw for a four point lead. After a steal from Jamar Diggs on the Cardinal's next trip down the floor, Dahlman added another lay-up for a 63-57 lead. In the final twelve seconds, Dahlman added three free throws for the 66-61 final score.
Appalachian State 82, High Point 81
HIGH POINT, N.C. - The Panthers rallied from a 10-point deficit to tie the game in the final minute before Andre Williamson sank the game-winning free throw with five seconds remaining to lift Appalachian State University men's basketball over High Point, 82-81, on Saturday night at the Millis Center in the annual ESPNU BracketBuster event.
The Mountaineers (13-14, 8-8 SoCon) held a narrow lead at the half before an explosive 16-6 run early in the second period gave the Panthers a six-point lead with 15 minutes to play. Petey Hausley scored 10 of his career-high 17 points in the second half to help ASU not only regain the lead, but push it to double figures three and a half minutes left in regulation.
HPU then furiously rallied to tie the game at 81-81 with 34.5 seconds remaining, thanks in part to five-straight points from Shay Shine and a timely turnover. On the Mountaineers' final possession of the game, Williamson caught a pass under the basket and was fouled on the layup attempt. He then sank the second of two free throws to put the Mountaineers ahead.
On the other end of the floor, Big South Preseason Player of the Year Nick Barbour launched a three-pointer from the left corner just before the buzzer sounded, but the shot fell short, denying the junior his second game-winner of the week. A teammate tipped in the miss but a video replay confirmed that the final horn had already sounded.
Hausley completed his first double-double with a season-high 10 rebounds, including five on the offensive glass. The junior sank 6-of-10 shots and 5-of-8 free throws with a pair of blocks off the bench.
Donald Sims paced the Mountaineer offense with 28 points on 7-of-10 shooting with 6-of-8 three-pointers and an 8-of-8 mark from the foul line. The senior dished out three assists and swiped three steals.
Appalachian overcame superb shooting by the Panthers all evening as HPU sank its first seven shots in the game en route to a 66.7 field goal percentage in the half. Relatively speaking, HPU cooled of in the second half, sinking 51.7 percent of its shots to finish at 58.9 percent for the game.
ASU shot better than 50 percent in each half and stood at 54.2 percent for the game, along with 9-of-13 three-pointers. Marcus Wright sank 2-of-3 from downtown and finished with eight points.
Williamson tallied nine points with three rebounds, two assists and a pair of blocks. The junior was 5-of-7 from the charity stripe, including his game-winner.
Omar Carter also reached double figures with 13 points on 6-of-11 shooting. He hauled in four rebounds and led the team with four assists.
The Apps owned a 26-23 advantage on the glass with seven offensive rebounds converting into seven second-chance points.
Shine led High Point with 27 points on 11-of-13 shooting, while three other players reached double figures for the Panthers, including Barbour's 18 points.
Appalachian returns home to host the final two games of the regular season. College of Charleston visits on Thursday for a 7 p.m. contest before The Citadel travels to the High Country on Saturday. ASU will honor its seniors prior to the 2 p.m. tipoff.
Georgia Southern 65, The Citadel 63
STATESBORO, Ga. - The Citadel's Mike Groselle and Cameron Wells shared game-high honors with 17 points apiece, but Georgia Southern finished with three players in double figures in a 65-53 victory at Hanner Fieldhouse on Saturday evening. Groselle also posted a game-high 10 rebounds to finish with his sixth double-double of the season, becoming the seventh different Bulldog to reach that milestone since the 1974-75 season. The Eagles were led by the trio of Ben Drayton (15 points), Zuri James (13 points) and Rory Spencer (13 points) in their first Southern Conference victory of the season.
Groselle improved on his conference leading field goal percentage numbers by hitting 7-of-10 (70%) from the floor. He crashed the boards for 10 rebounds, grabbing three on the offensive glass, to make for his second double-double in as many games. Wells finished 5-of-11 from the floor and was a perfect 7-of-7 from the charity stripe, marking the 10th time this season he has not missed a free throw in a single game. Senior Zach Urbanus led six other players with five points. Bryan Streeter grabbed eight rebounds, including three on the offensive end, and teamed with Groselle to give the Dogs a 36-27 edge on the boards. The loss drops The Citadel to 9-20 overall and 5-11 in Southern Conference play.
Drayton capped off a 6-of-13 performance with team-highs in points (15) and assists (six) along with six rebounds. The junior guard was successful on 3-of-4 attempts from the free throw line, finishing as the only Eagle player with multiple conversions. Spencer was a key presence in the post with 13 points and four rebounds. He allowed Georgia Southern to finish with a 32-22 advantage in points in the paint. James knocked down 3-of-6 from beyond the arc, helping the Eagles finish 28-of-54 (51.9%) from the field. The victory snapped a 15-game losing streak, tying the longest in school history. Georgia Southern improves to 5-24 overall and 1-15 in league action.
Clinging to a two-point advantage at the intermission, Georgia Southern scored 12 of the first 22 points in the opening 7:59 of second half to assume a 44-38 lead. The Bulldogs got four points from apiece from Groselle and Wells to keep within four of the Eagles.
Georgia Southern answered with three straight buckets, companied with a pair of Bulldog turnovers, by Cameron Baskerville, Jelani Hewitt and James to stretch the lead to 50-40 just over a minute later. Groselle ended the drought by drawing Marvin Baynham foul and trimmed the lead back to single digits.
Three straight buckets by the Eagles along with empty possessions by The Citadel allowed for the 56-42 lead with 7:40 remaining. The back-and-forth contest continued as Dahn hit a jumper to silence the Georgia Southern onlookers and free throws by Daniel Eykyn and Wells again put the Bulldogs within striking distance, 56-48, at the 5:12 mark.
Spencer scored three of the Eagles final nine points of the game to help secure the 65-53 victory. Georgia Southern closed the second half by hitting 15-of-27 (55.6%) from the floor, while The Citadel managed just 7-for-28 (25.0%).
Wells scored nine points to lead The Citadel, including five during a crucial stretch of the first half, to share game-high scoring honors with Drayton at the intermission. The Bulldogs finished the first half 12-of-22 (54.5%) from the floor, marking the first time since playing UNC Greensboro (Feb. 7) that the team topped 50 percent in the first half. Wells teamed with Groselle (eight points) and Urbanus (five points) to make for the top Citadel offensive leaders.
The Citadel rebounded from an early 6-2 deficit to gain its first lead, at the 17:49 mark, following consecutive buckets from Urbanus and Wells. Georgia Southern answered with an 11-0 run over the next 3:18 of the contest to assume a 17-7 lead. The run was sparked by four points each from Drayton and Rory Spencer.
After a jumper off the glass by Groselle ended the Bulldogs drought, but Georgia Southern continued to apply defensive pressure while making buckets offensively. Baynham recorded four of the next six Eagles points to build a 23-9 lead with 11:10 remaining in the half. Wells converted a jumper in the lane and following fast break buckets by Dahn and Groselle, The Citadel narrowed the gap to 23-15.
A Jelani Hewitt 3-pointer pushed the lead back to nine, but Wells was the catalyst to a 10-0 run by the Cadets to draw even at 26-26. Over the next 3:46 of the game the senior guard scored five points and along with two points from Streeter, Urbanus and DeVontae Wright the Dogs completed the rally.
Despite points in the paint from Groselle and Morakinyo Williams, giving The Citadel 10 post points in the first half, Georgia Southern held a slight two-point lead at the intermission on a last second tip-in by Eric Ferguson.
Elon 99, UNCG 90
ELON, N.C. - Cutting into double-digit halftime deficits is an impressive trait. For obvious reasons, it's one that the UNCG Spartans would rather keep out of heavy rotation.
The Spartans responded to a 20-point, second-half disadvantage by scoring on nine straight possessions Saturday, but that wasn't enough to overcome homestanding Elon in a 99-90 defeat. Senior guard Chris Long, playing in his final home game, burned UNCG with 22 of his 30 points after the break as the Phoenix completed a sweep in the season series.
Brandon Evans and Trevis Simpson led a remarkably efficient second half for UNCG (5-21, 5-10 Southern Conference,) which scored more points after halftime (59) than it has managed in four complete games this season. The Spartans generated occasional difficulty for Elon with a half-court trap that induced turnovers, but once the Phoenix got a shot, it normally found success. It shot 64 percent from the floor in the second half.
Sebastian Koch went 6-for-12 from the 3-point line to supplement Long's efforts.
The Spartans, who have wiped out sizeable second-half deficits five times this season, found this attempt mitigated by foul trouble, as well as Elon's efficiency in moving the ball around the perimeter. Simpson, who delivered 10 points in two and a half minutes and sliced the deficit to 70-65 with 8:14 left, picked up his fourth foul 34 seconds later and was limited the rest of the way.
The road was simply too long. And, well, Long. The guard ran Elon spread offense with 10 assists and exploited necessary overplays by driving down the lane three times for layups to restore the lead to 11.
Evans, who came off Dement's bench to author 26 points in 31 minutes of action, fronted the trap, which forced three turnovers in succession and fueled one final run that ran out of time.
Elon built its working margin by holding UNCG scoreless over the final four minutes of the first half to expand an eight-point lead to 46-31 at halftime.
Things briefly trended upward for UNCG when Korey Van Dussen scored six of his 15 points in the first 47 seconds of the second half, but Long followed in short order with consecutive 3-pointers to boost Elon to a 63-43 advantage.