Chattanooga 86, Hiwassee 68
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. --- Chattanooga Mocs senior Z. Mason had a career night propelling his squad to an 86-68 win over visiting Hiwassee. Mason tallied 41 points and 12 rebounds becoming the first Moc since Ricky Taylor (Jan. 27, 2011 vs. UNCG) to top the 40-point mark.
“Z. Mason was really good,” Head Coach Will Wade said. “I thought Casey Jones played well. Outside of that, we really weren’t very good. We have to hope this knocked the rust off and our exam break off of us.”
Mason made 16 of 20 shots including three of four from 3pt range. Casey Jones tied his career high with 17 points, while Martynas Bareika added 10 points in his first start of the season.
Hiwassee also got a spectacular performance from reserve guard Howie Meadows from nearby Meigs County, Tenn. Meadows made eight three-pointers en route to a 26-point game keeping his team in the game for the first 20 minutes.
The Tigers led 36-30 on a Jeff Waggoner three with 3:36 to go in the first half. Mason and Jones combined for nine straight points including a buzzer-beating tip-in for Jones to send Chattanooga into the break leading 39-36.
The duo continued the run into the second half. It turned into a 27-7 spurt for Mason and Jones as Mason’s 31st and 32nd points made it a 57-43 lead with 14:07 remaining. Anthanee Doyle (Holly Springs, N.C.) made it a 16-point game with a jumper at 13:30. It was the first basket for the Mocs not scored by Mason or Jones in 10-and-a-half minutes of clock time.
It would get no closer than 14 the rest of the way. Mason’s 41st point gave the Mocs their biggest advantage of 23, 80-57, with 4:14 to play.
“We were better in the second half,” Wade added. “I think they scored 11 points in about the first 11 minutes of the second half. That was good and what we should do, but give Hiwassee credit.
Chattanooga shot 56.1 percent (32-57) from the field including 43.8 percent (7-16) from beyond the arc. It won the battle of the glass 43-26 which led to a 22-4 advantage in second chance points.
Hiwassee’s Meadows was eight for 12 from 3pt range. He hit five of his eight keying the Tigers first-half heroics. Justin Browner chipped in 13 points, while Joel Bailey added nine points, five rebounds, six assists and three steals.
Mason’s night was pretty special. It was the first 30-point, 10-rebound game since Oliver Morton (1999-01) at Appalachian State on January 29, 2000. It is the only 40-point, 10-board game in the DI era (since 1977-78).
Mars Hill 97, Furman 93
GREENVILLE, S.C. – Guard Devonte Williams led five Lions in double figures with 20 points and added 10 assists to propel NCAA Division II Mars Hill to a 97-93 upset victory over Furman in non-conference men's basketball action Tuesday evening on YP Court at Timmons Arena.
The loss snapped Furman's 36-game winning streak against non-NCAA Division I foes and marked its first setback against a non-division I team since a 70-69 loss to Newberry at the Lay Physical Activities Center on November 15, 1997.
Furman led 59-54 with 14:22 remaining when the Lions embarked on a 13-3 run to take control. Williams drained a pair of free throws on either side of a Carter Wright layup to give Mars Hill the lead and Thomas Anderson answered a Larry Wideman trey with back-to-back baskets. Will White came off of the bench to knock down a three-pointer with 10:22 left to cap the run and give the Lions a 67-62 lead that they would not relinquish.
Furman (4-5) cut the margin down to three points and trailed by just four at 70-66 on Dominic Early's free throw with 7:35 to play, but the Lions let the Paladins no closer than four points the rest of the way as they connected on 13 of their next 15 free throw attempts to extend the lead to 87-77 with 2:13 to go. The Paladins cut the lead to two possessions on several occasions in the final minutes, but a 14-for-28 effort at the foul line by Furman in the second half helped Mars Hill (2-6) hold on for the victory.
Williams made 12-of-18 free throw attempts to pace the Lions, who hit 32-of-49 shots from the charity stripe. Wright and Jalen Witherspoon buried four treys apiece to score 18 and 17 points, respectively, while Anderson and Kevin Haynes added 14 points apiece.
Mars Hill shot 52.9 percent from the field, including 11-of-22 from three-point range.
Wideman drained five triples to pace the Paladins with 20 points, and Stephen Croone reached double figures for the ninth straight game this season by scoring 16. William Gates Jr. tallied 14 points, Kris Acox contributed 13 points and eight rebounds, and Charlie Reddick chipped in with 11 points to round out Furman's double-digit scorers.
The Paladins shot 47.8 percent from the field and connected on 8-of-25 three-point attempts, but the SoCon's leading free throw shooting club converted just 19-of-35 trips to the foul line. Furman managed a 40-38 edge on the glass, outscored the Lions 42-26 in the paint and totaled 17 second chance points on 17 offensive rebounds.
The teams traded the lead four times in the opening half before Furman carried a 45-44 lead into the locker room. Mars Hill tied the game at 49-49 prior to a 10-5 run that gave the Paladins their largest lead of the game.
Mars Hill's 97 points was the most ever scored by a Paladin opponent at Timmons Arena and most scored against Furman since Cal State Fullerton downed the Paladins 103-72 on December 28, 2007. Furman's 93 points were its most since a 99-69 win over Sewanee at Timmons Arena on December 15, 2005.