Men's Basketball Southern Conference

Thursday's Men's Basketball Roundup

Davidson 73, Western Carolina 59

DAVIDSON, N.C. - Jake Cohen recorded his first double-double of the season with a season-high 24 points and 12 rebounds tolead Davidson to a 73-59 victory over Western Carolina in Southern Conference men's basketball action Thursday evening at John M. Belk Arena.

In addition to finishing 9-of-16 from the floor and 4-of-5 at the stripe, Cohen recorded two blocks and a pair of steals.

The backcourt duo of JP Kuhlman and Nik Cochran also hit double figures for theWildcats with 13 and 10 points, respectively. Kuhlman handed out a game-high seven assists, while Cochran, the nation's top free-throw shooter, went 8-of-8 from the line to go along with four assists.

ChrisCzerapowicz matched Cohen's 12 rebounds and scored eight points for Davidson.

The Wildcats finished at 41.1 percent and held Western Carolina to 37.7 percent.

Davidson (16-7, 11-1 SoCon), the nation's top free-throw shooting team, knocked down 20-of-24 attempts to improve to 81 percent on the campaign.

Trey Sumler and Tawaski King led Western Carolina (8-15, 5-6 SoCon) with 16 points and seven rebounds each. Sumler also had five assists and a game-high four steals.

Following sluggish starts offensively by both teams, Davidson used a 24-7 run to go up by 18 before going to the half with a 38-22 lead. Despite opening 3-of-14 from the floor, the Wildcats made eight of their next 14 to conclude the first half,while recording 10 assists on 11 field goals in the period.

Davidson pushed its advantage to as many as 21 early in the second half, but a 12-2 run led by Sumler cut the Wildcat lead to 11, 50-39, with 13:35 to play. A 10-5spurt gave Davidson a 16-point cushion before the Catamounts cut the deficit to 11, 60-49, with just under nine minutes to play.

That was as close as WCU would get though, as the Wildcats answered the spurt with one of their own to extend the margin back to 16 and put the game out of reach.


Wofford 60, Elon 50

SPARTANBURG, S.C. - The Wofford men's basketball team used a strong defensive performance in a 60-50 win over Elon on Thursday night at Benjamin Johnson Arena. The Terriers were down by one point at the half, but outscored the Phoenix by eleven in the second half to end Elon's winning streak at seven games.

Wofford moves to 9-15 on the season and 3-8 in the Southern Conference. Elon is 15-9 overall and 8-3 in the SoCon. The Terriers were led by freshman Spencer Collins with 16 points, while Karl Cochran added 13 points and Lee Skinner had ten. Indiana Faithfull had eight points, eight rebounds and two assists. The Phoenix was led by Ryley Beaumont with 17 points and seven rebounds, while current SoCon Player of the Week Lucas Troutman was held to ten points.

The Phoenix scored first and they built a 7-2 lead after the first four minutes of play. Wofford scored the next four points to cut the lead to 7-6 with 14:51 on the clock. Spencer Collins gave the Terriers a 10-9 advantage after a jumper by Spencer Collins at the 10:15 mark. Elon had a three bank in off the glass as the shot clock expired for a 12-10 lead, but a drive to the basket by Lee Skinner tied the game at 12 after eight minutes.

Wofford took a 14-12 lead on a shot by Spencer Collins with 6:58 remaining in the first half. The Terriers continued the 8-1 run and had an 18-13 lead at the five minute mark. Back-to-back three pointers by the Phoenix gave them a 19-18 advantage with 3:36 left on the clock. A free throw by James Long, his first career point, tied the game at 19. A bucket by Lee Skinner with 59 seconds remaining gave Wofford a 21-20 lead. Elon scored the final bucket of the half for a 22-21 advantage at the break.

To open the second half, Wofford scored first and a dunk by Karl Cochran made it a 25-22 lead. Elon answered with a three to tie the game at 25 before two free throws by Spencer Collins gave the Terriers a 27-25 lead with 16:57 on the clock. Wofford pushed the lead to 33-27 after a break-away dunk by Spencer Collins at the 15:42 mark. Elon answered with the next four points before C.J. Neumann hit a pair of free throws for a 35-31 lead.

The Terriers used a three pointer by Indiana Faithfull to take a 40-34 lead with 10:40 left in the second half. A break-away lay-up by Karl Cochran and two free throws by C.J. Neumann gave the Terriers a 44-36 lead at the 7:55 mark. Back-to-back buckets by Lee Skinner and Indiana Faithfull pushed the advantage to 52-40 with 3:36 on the clock. After Elon hit a three, the Terriers scored the next six points for a 58-45 lead with 55 seconds left. Another three by Elon cut the score to 59-50 with just 14.7 on the clock, but Wofford added one free throw for the 60-50 final.

Wofford shot 42.9 percent  from the floor while Elon shot 37.3 percent overall. The Terriers were 1-of-6 from with three, while the Phoenix was 7-of-25 from behind the arc. Elon was 5-of-12 from the line while Wofford was 17-of-23 on free throws. The Terriers had a 35 to 32 lead on the glass.


UNCG 88, Furman 65 

GREENVILLE, S.C. - Trevis Simpson, the Southern Conference's leading scorer, poured in a game-high 29 points to guide UNCG to an 88-65 victory over Furman in men's basketball action Thursday evening on YP.com Court at Timmons Arena.

Simpson connected on 10-of-18 field goal attempts, including 3-of-6 from three-point range, and UNCG (7-15, 5-6 SoCon) shot 60 percent from the field on 9-of-15 shooting from beyond the arc to earn a regular season split with the Paladins (6-15, 3-7 SoCon).

The Spartans built a 48-26 halftime lead by converting on 20-of-33 first half shots, including 8-of-12 three-point attempts. Furman, just 3-for-21 from three-point range on the night, made only 1-of-9 long range attempts in the opening 20 minutes and shot just 35.6 percent for the game.

Kayel Locke, Nicholas Paulos and Derrell Armstrong joined Simpson in double figures with each tallying 11 points. UNCG outscored the Paladins 38-20 in the paint and held a 42-29 edge in rebounding.

Freshman Larry Wideman paced Furman with a career-high 18 points while Stephen Croone added 13 points and senior Colin Reddick contributed 12 points and a game-high nine boards.

 
Appalachian State 91, Georgia Southern 86 (OT)

STATESBORO, Ga. - Appalachian State University men's basketball overcame a double-digit halftime deficit to pick its second overtime win of the season against Southern Conference rival Georgia Southern on Thursday at Hanner Fieldhouse

The Mountaineers (10-12, 6-5 SoCon) were able to overcome a quick start by the Eagles (10-14, 4-7) to snap a three-game road losing streak and remain in the thick of the race for the SoCon North Division title.

Appalachian started things off on a high note when Jay Canty took a pass from Mike Neal and threw down a thunderous dunk on the squad's first possession, but GSU responded with a bucket of its own to tie the game early.

Eric Ferguson would put the Eagles ahead for the first time (5-4) when he connected from beyond the arc with 17:27 left in the half. App State regained the lead when Nathan Healy nailed a layup on the ensuing Mountaineer possession, but the Eagles reeled off a 7-0 run, capped off by Ferguson's fastbreak dunk, to take a 12-6 lead with 15:34 remaining in the period.

Georgia Southern would continue to take advantage of its momentum as it extended its lead to as many as 11 points (28-17) on a three-pointer from Cleon Roberts with just over seven minutes left on the clock.

Appalachian State was able to close the gap to just six points (28-22) when Tevin Baskin nailed a short jumper at the 5:06 mark of the first half, but the Eagles were able to end the half on a 9-5 run and take a 37-27 lead into the locker room.

The Mountaineers started out strong in the second half, scoring the first five points of the final period to cut the Eagles' lead to 37-32 in the opening two minutes, but back-to-back buckets by Ferguson pushed Georgia Southern's lead back to nine points (41-32) with 17:35 left to play.

Tab Hamilton pulled the Apps within three points (44-41) when he connected from long range with just over 16 minutes left to play, but GSU rattled off two quick buckets to push the lead back to 48-41.

Appalachian was able to close the gap to just two points (54-52) when Healy connected on a pair of free throws with 9:24 left to play and tied the contest at 54-54 on Baskin's tip in with 8:39 on the clock.

After Georgia Southern hit one-of-two free throws on the next possession to take a 55-54 lead, the Mountaineers responded when Michael Obacha converted a three-point play to give the Apps a two-point lead (57-55) with just under eight minutes to play.

A back-and-forth battle would ensue over the final five minutes of play after Healy's three-pointer at the 4:57 mark put the Mountaineers up by three points (62-59) and sparked a 12-3 run that saw the Apps jump out to a 69-62 lead with 2:40 on the clock.

Georgia Southern would not go quietly, however, as it reeled off six-straight points to make it a one-point contest (69-68) with just over a minute to play and, with only 30 seconds on the clock, cut a three-point deficit to just one point (73-72) on C.J. Reed's layup.

The Eagles were forced to foul with just 15.5 seconds remaining and Neal stepped to the line, but missed a pair of free throws to give Georgia Southern one final chance as Marvin Baynham stepped to the line following a foul and connected on the first of two free throws to send the game to overtime.

After trading buckets on each team's first two possessions, the Eagles were able to gain the advantage when Ferguson hit a three-pointer to give GSU an 80-77 lead with 3:22 left. The Mountaineers were able to close the gap to 86-85 on a pair of free throws by Healy with 48.6 seconds remaining.

A defensive stop with just 27 seconds left would give the Apps a chance to take the lead and the squad responded as Canty drew a foul with 18.7 seconds remaining and nailed a pair of free throws to give Appalachian an 87-86 lead. Healy and Jamaal Trice would seal the win by going 4-of-4 from the charity stripe in the final 10 seconds to give the Apps a 91-86 win.

Healy led all players with a career-high tying 24 points and 11 rebounds while Hamilton poured in 16 and Canty finished with 15 to go along with eight boards. Neal scored 13 points and ripped down a career-best nine boards. Baskin chipped in with 12 points and five rebounds.

 
Chattanooga 89, The Citadel 76

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. --- The Chattanooga Mocs (9-14, 4-6 SoCon) cruised to an 89-76 home win over The Citadel (6-16, 3-9 SoCon) in McKenzie Arena Thursday night. Gee McGhee tallied a career-high 22 points to pace five Mocs in double figures in the Southern Conference inter-division matchup.

UTC led by as many as 16 in the second half as Z. Mason's (Nashville, Tenn.) emphatic slam in traffic at 10:51 made it 70-54 for the home team. The Bulldogs clawed their way back getting within nine, 78-69, on Raemond Robinson's trey at 5:18. It was an eight-point affair, 80-72, following two P.J. Horgan free throws with 4:01 to play.

But the Mocs would not be denied. McGhee's old-fashioned three-point play was followed by two Ronrico White free throws to extend the lead back to 13, 85-72, with 1:41 left. McGhee made it a 16-point game again with two free throws just inside a minute to go, 89-73. Horgan's three-pointer with 42 ticks remaining ended the scoring providing the 89-76 final.

Horgan was phenomenal offensively for The Citadel. He had game highs with 25 points and 10 rebounds. Mike Groselle added 19 points and seven boards. The duo combined to shoot 16 of 22 from the field, while their teammates managed just 37.0 percent (10-27).

McGhee led five total Mocs in double digits. White had 19 to go with five rebounds and three assists. Drazen Zlovaric had 18 points and seven rebounds, while Mason scored all of his 14 points after intermission. Martynas Bareika scored 12 points off the bench. McGhee added seven rebounds, tying Zlovaric for game-high honors, and four assists.

Chattanooga dominated the "game-inside-the-game" tonight. It held a 52-38 advantage on points in the paint, 23-5 on points off turnovers and 22-8 on second chance points. The UTC pressure defense forced 16 Bulldogs miscues, while committing just eight of its own on the offensive end.

The Mocs shot 52.3 percent from the field for the game, 42.9 percent (6-14) from three-point range. The 52.3 percent, which came on 34 of 65 shooting, is the second-highest on the season in SoCon (57.8 percent at Samford) play.

Zlovaric keyed a big start for the Mocs. He scored eight of the first 12 points out of the gate as UTC led by eight, 17-9, at the 14:32 mark. The Citadel battled back to within two, 19-17, on a Horgan layup. The lead swelled to nine twice on baskets by Zlovaric and McGhee, before the Bulldogs got it back to two, 33-31, on a Matt Van Scyoc jumper with 6:18 to go.

Chattanooga answered with back-to-back three-pointers by White and McGhee to run it out to an eight-point margin. White's triple was made possible by outstanding hustle on the offensive glass by McGhee. White hit two free throws with 5.1 left in the half to provide a seven-point halftime cushion, 44-37.


College of Charleston 69, Samford 65

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - College of Charleston overcame a five-point halftime deficit by stepping up its defensive pressure and shooting 56 percent in the second half to roll to its fifth-straight win in Southern Conference play with a 69-65 road victory at Samford on Thursday night at the Pete Hanna Center.

The Cougars (17-7, 9-3 SoCon) split the regular-season series with the Bulldogs (7-16, 5-5 SoCon) to avenge a 62-57 loss on their own home court a month prior on Jan. 10 at TD Arena.

Five players scored in double figures including the dominant inside play of sophomore forward Adjehi Baru, who registered his sixth double-double of the season with a team-high 15 points and 10 rebounds, and redshirt junior forward Willis Hall with 10 points and seven rebounds.

After jumping out to a 13-4 run in the first five minutes of the ballgame, CofC struggled to find a shot that would find the back of the net. The Cougars went 12-of-31 (38.7 percent) from the floor and 0-for-9 from beyond the arc in the first half of play. They went into the locker room trailing Samford, 31-26.

Junior reserve forward/guard Nori Johnson scored all of his seven points in the second half in which he helped spark the Cougars to a run of their own to regain the lead on his made layup, 43-42, with 9:36 remaining in regulation.

CofC never looked back after that point and stretched its lead out to as many as 12 points on two made free throws by Johnson with one minute left on the clock, 62-50.

Samford wouldn't go down without a fight and tossed up four desperation three-pointers, including three from Raijon Kelly in the final seconds, to force the Cougars to use their remaining timeouts to strategize and defend the last-second comeback by the Bulldogs. Kelly ended the night with a game-high 21 points.