Western Carolina 67, Samford 64
CULLOWHEE, N.C. – After trailing by three at the break, Western Carolina scored the first six points of the second half and clung on as the Catamounts narrowly escaped with a 67-64 Southern Conference win over Samford Saturday afternoon in front of the biggest home crowd of the season in the Ramsey Center.
The first half was a back-and-forth affair as WCU led by five points, 30-25, with three minutes to play in the opening frame. Samford fought back with an 8-0 run highlighted by five points from Tyler Hood as the Bulldogs ended the period with a 33-30 lead.
Samford held a slight advantage from the field in the first half shooting 48 percent from the floor compared to WCU’s mark of 46 percent. The Bulldogs made five of its 11 3-point attempts in the half for 46 percent, while the Catamounts went 2-for-6 from behind the arc for 33 percent.
The Catamounts came out of the half with the first six points to take a 36-33 lead less than a minute into play following a three-point play from Brandon Boggs and a transition triple from James Sinclair following a Trey Sumler steal and assist.
The Purple & Gold pushed the margin out to nine points, 49-40, at the 15-minute mark on the heels of a Sumler four-point play. Sumler was fouled while draining a three from the left wing on the play. The Catamounts controlled the next eight minutes of play even extending the lead out to 10 points, 62-52, following a 3-point basket from Tom Tankelewicz with seven minutes to play.
However, Samford used the next three and a half minutes to chip the WCU lead down to two points, 62-60, on a Russell Wilson fast break layup. A minute a half later, a Tim Williams layup pulled the Bulldogs within one point, 64-63, but Sinclair converted two free throws to regain a three-point lead, 66-63, for the Catamounts with 2:22 left.
Samford got a free throw from Tim Williams with 59 seconds to cut the lead down to two points, 66-64, and WCU kept the Bulldogs in the game as the Catamounts missed their next four free throw attempts. Mike Brown missed the first of his two attempts with two seconds to play, but converted the second to give WCU a 67-64 advantage. On the ensuing Samford inbounds, Raijon Kelly’s game-tying 3-point attempt from half court hit the front of the iron as WCU escaped with the win.
WCU remains unbeaten in the Ramsey Center on the season improving to 8-0 at home. The win also lifts the Catamounts to 11-8 overall and 4-0 in SoCon play, while Samford slips to 7-13 on the season and 1-4 in the conference.
Samford outshot WCU going 44 percent from the floor after a 40 percent mark in the second half. WCU dipped to 37 percent over the final 20 minutes as the Catamounts ended the game at 42 percent overall. However the Purple & Gold made five of its 15 3-point attempts in the second half and limited the Bulldogs to an 0-for-5 mark. WCU finished 33 percent from three, while Samford ended at 31 percent.
Both teams entered the game with a 69 free throw percentage, but neither performed at its season average in the game. WCU made 16 of its 25 free throws for 64 percent, while Samford converted on 17 of its 28 attempts for 61 percent.
WCU’s Sinclair and Samford’s Isaiah Williams tied for the game-high with 15 points each. Sinclair ended 5-of-6 from the floor including a 2-of-3 ledger from behind the arc, while Isaiah Williams went 5-of-7 overall and with two 3-points on three attempts. Both players made three of their four free throw attempts.
The Catamounts picked up 13 points from Sumler and 10 points from Boggs in the win. Sumler also handed out six assists, while Kenneth Hall protected the WCU rim with a career-high six blocks.
Tim Williams and Hood tallied 11 points each for the Bulldogs. All 11 of Hood’s points came in the first half as he went 0-for-3 from the field and 0-for-2 from 3-point range.
Appalachian State 81, Georgia Southern 68
BOONE, N.C. – Tommy Spagnolo recorded his first career double-double and Appalachian State University men's basketball saw five players score in double digits in an 81-68 win over Southern Conference rival Georgia Southern on Saturday at the Holmes Center.
The Mountaineers (5-13, 1-4 SoCon) picked up their seventh-straight home win over the Eagles (9-10, 2-2) and snapped a five-game losing streak in the process.
After falling behind by as many as three points on two occasions in the opening 10 minutes, Appalachian reeled off a 10-1 run over a six-minute stretch to grab a 21-15 lead at the 5:30 mark and en route to its most impressive win of the season.
Georgia Southern was able to trim the deficit to just two points (23-21) with 3:51 to go in the opening period, but the Mountaineers outscored the Eagles 11-5 to close out the half and headed to the locker room with a 34-26 lead.
The Eagles opened the second half in impressive fashion with a 14-4 run to erase the halftime deficit and grab a 40-38 lead five minutes into the final period of play, but the lead was short-lived as the Apps jumped back in front (41-40) on Ty Toney's three pointer with 14:23 to play.
GSU tied the game 44-44 on a pair of free throws from Sam Mike one minute later and trailed by just two points (52-50) with just under 10 minutes to play, but Appalachian put its foot on the gas and the Mountaineers reeled off an 18-2 run to take an 18-point lead (70-52) and put the game out of reach.
Spagnolo set career highs with 12 points and 16 rebounds while Toney surpassed his previous career high with 11 points. Michael Obacha scored 14 points and snagged eight boards while Tab Hamilton and Chris Burgess poured in 17 and 15 points, respectively.
Brian Holmes paced Georgia Southern with 21 points and Jelani Hewitt scored 19, but the Eagles got just three points from Tre Bussey, who entered the contest averaging 18.6 points per game,
The Mountaineers shot 48.2 percent (27-of-56) from the floor, including 10-of-20 from long range, while holding the Georgia Southern to just 37.5 percent (18-of-48). The Apps grabbed 43 rebounds to GSU's 34 and dished out 21 assists while forcing 16 turnovers.
Davidson 93, UNCG 82
GREENSBORO, N.C. – De’Mon Brooks led three Davidson players in double figures with 24 points and the Wildcats went 35-of-39 from the charity stripe to defeat UNCG, 93-82, in Southern Conference men’s basketball action Saturday evening at the Greensboro Coliseum.
In addition to a season-best performance at the line, the Wildcats shot 60.9 percent in the second half to finish at 48.1 percent, while going 8-of-16 from long range.
Brooks was 8-of-13 from the floor and 8-of-10 at the line to record his third 20-point effort in the last five games and 20th of his career. Jack Gibbs followed with 17 points, hitting all 12 of his free throws, while Brian Sullivan added 14 points, including three treys.
Davidson (8-11, 4-1 SoCon) weathered a pair of 20-point efforts from the Spartans. Nicholas Paulos was a perfect 9-for-9 on 3-pointers, to finish with 27 points, while Tevon Saddler added 20 points and Kyle Cain chipped in 19.
Paulos set a new school and conference record for 3-pointers without a miss, while falling short of the NCAA standard by two. As a team, the Spartans finished 11-of-22 from deep, but shot just 41.2 percent for the contest.
After UNCG (10-10, 3-2 SoCon) made it a three-point contest, 45-42, the Wildcats responded with an 18-6 run to go grab its largest lead of the contest, 63-48, with 9:47 to go. UNCG wouldn’t go away and cut the deficit to six on separate occasions with under a minute to play, but the Wildcats made their free throws down the stretch to put the game out of reach.
Both teams pulled down 35 rebounds, while Davidson got 33 points from its bench.
Despite a sluggish start, the Wildcats used a 15-6 spurt midway through the opening period to take a 25-16 lead before going to the half up, 40-32.
Chattanooga 71, Wofford 57
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – On Saturday night, the Wofford men’s basketball team was defeated 71-57 by Chattanooga at Benjamin Johnson Arena. The Mocs used an 18-4 run in the first half to build an eight point lead at the half and the Terriers could get no closer than five points in the second half.
Wofford is 7-10 on the season and 2-3 in the Southern Conference. Chattanooga is 12-8 overall and 6-0 in league play, winning eight straight. The Terriers were led by Karl Cochran with 19 points. Lee Skinner had eleven points and ten rebounds for his fifth double-double of the season. The Mocs had five players in double figures, with Ronrico White scoring 16 points. Z. Mason had 15 rebounds and 12 points, along with five blocked shots.
The Terriers scored first on a jumper by Karl Cochran and after a three pointer by Eric Garcia had a 7-4 lead two minutes into the half. A three pointer by the Mocs at the 15:45 mark gave them an 11-9 advantage. Spencer Collins answered with a three pointer for a 12-11 lead, but the Mocs scored the next five points for a 16-12 score. Jaylen Allen hit a three for a 16-15 game after eight minutes of play.
Karl Cochran scored six straight points to regain the lead for Wofford at 21-18 with 8:35 left in the first half. The Mocs answered with the next seven points to take a 25-21 lead three minutes later. Karl Cochran ended the run with a lay-up, but the Mocs led 27-23 with 5:08 on the clock. A long three pointer for Chattanooga pushed the score to 30-23 with 4:34 left in the half. Spencer Collins ended the Mocs 12-2 run with a lay-up, but the Mocs lead was 34-25 with 1:40 remaining. A three pointer by Karl Cochran with less than a minute left cut the score to 36-28, which was the score at the break.
To open the second half, Karl Cochran’s lay-up cut the lead to 36-30. A lay-up by Indiana Faithfull made it a 37-32 game with 16:10 on the clock. The Mocs scored the next five points for a 42-32 lead. Chattanooga kept it an eight point lead before a three pointer pushed the score to 49-38 with 11:40 on the clock. Wofford cut it to 51-43 with a bucket and free throw by Lee Skinner with 10:11 remaining. Two minutes later, the Mocs lead was 55-45.
Chattanooga extended the lead to 58-46 with 5:21 remaining in the second half. Two pair of free throws by Lee Skinner cut it to 58-50 forty seconds later. A Lee Skinner bucket off a steal made it a six point game, but the Mocs score the next four points for a 62-52 lead at the 3:52 mark. A three pointer by Spencer Collins was answered by four straight points from the line for a 66-55 lead with 1:47 remaining. Spencer Collins added one more bucket before Chattanooga scored the last five points of the game for a 71-57 final margin.
Wofford shot 33.9 percent from the floor. Chattanooga shot 42.9 percent overall. The Terriers were 5-of-15 from with three, while the Mocs were 4-of-11 from behind the arc. Chattanooga was 25-of-32 from the line while Wofford was 12-of-14 on free throws. The Mocs had a 36 to 35 advantage on the glass and the Terriers turned the ball over 15 times. Karl Cochran fouled out for Wofford with 1:48 left in the game.
Furman 76, The Citadel 71
CHARLESTON, S.C. – Sophomore Kendrec Ferrara scored a career-high 27 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to help Furman hold off The Citadel, 76-71, in Southern Conference men’s basketball action on Saturday night at McAlister Fieldhouse in Charleston, S.C.
Ferrara, who has scored 20 or more points in four of his last five games, connected on 12-of-17 field goal attempts to help Furman build an 18-point lead and grabbed several key rebounds down the stretch as the Paladins topped The Citadel for the sixth time in the last eight meetings.
Furman shot 60 percent from the floor, including 7-of-11 beyond the arc, to lead 39-25 at intermission and extended its margin to 18 at 56-38 when Ferrara buried his only three-point attempt of the night with 12:55 to play. The Citadel answered by holding Furman to just one field goal over a seven-minute stretch and capped an 18-4 run with a Matt Van Scyoc trey that cut the Paladins’ lead to 62-58 with 4:52 remaining.
The Bulldogs trimmed the lead to just three points on four occasions in the final three minutes with Stephen Croone’s two free throws with 12.2 seconds left restoring the Paladins’ five-point cushion at 74-69. Van Scyoc scored on The Citadel’s next possession, but William Gates Jr. grabbed the inbounds pass and hit a pair of free throws with 0.6 seconds remaining to cap the Furman victory.
Furman shot 47.4 percent from the field and made 10-of-20 three-point attempts while committing just 10 turnovers. Senior Charlie Reddick drained 4-of-9 three-point attempts to join Ferrara in double figures with a season-high 16 points and Croone reached double digits for the 18th time in 19 games this season with 12 points. The sophomore point guard added five assists and an emphatic one-handed jam from the baseline in the second half that helped the Paladins hold off The Citadel’s late charge.
The Paladins’ first SoCon victory improved head coach Niko Medved’s squad to 7-12 overall and 1-5 in league play. The Citadel slipped to 4-16 overall and 0-5 in the league.
Larry Wideman scored all nine of his points in the opening half on 3-for-4 shooting from long range, and Reddick connected on a 27-foot trey as the halftime buzzer sounded to help Furman to a 14-point first half lead on 15-of-25 shooting.
Ashton Moore paced The Citadel with 25 points. Van Scyoc and Brian White added 17 and 10 points, respectively. The Bulldogs managed a 37-33 edge on the glass, but Furman held the home team to 45 percent shooting from the field.
Massachusetts 84, Elon 74
ELON, N.C. – Sebastian Koch recorded his 1,000th career point on Saturday night, Jan. 18, in front of a record crowd in Alumni Gym, but it was not enough for the Elon men’s basketball team in a 84-74 setback to No. 15 UMass.
Elon falls to 10-9 with the loss, while UMass improves to 16-1. Tonight’s crowd of 1,857 is a new Alumni Gym record since the arena went under renovations prior to the 2010-11 season.
Koch finished the night with 18 points on 6-of-10 shooting, joining teammates Lucas Troutman and Jack Isenbarger in the 1,000-point club in the second period when his three from the wing fell through with 19:36 left.
Troutman scored a team-high 19 points, while Tanner Samson added 14.
Elon could not find a rhythm from the field, shooting 34 percent and going just 9-of-24 from three-point land.
UMass ended the night shooting 46 percent from the field and 74 percent (26-of-35) from the free throw line.
The Minutemen took a 13-point lead and forced an Elon timeout with 8:43 remaining in the first period following a Maxie Esho jumper from the top of the key that made it a 27-14 game.
UMass carried a 41-30 lead into the locker room at intermission after limiting the Phoenix to 30 percent shooting in the opening frame, including a 3-of-13 mark from long distance. The Minutemen knocked down 52 percent (16-of-31) from the field in the first period, as Cady Lalanne led all scorers with 16 points.
Tanner Samson pulled the Phoenix within eight and forced a UMass timeout with 7:08 to play after knocking down a three near the Elon bench that made it a 64-56 game.
Troutman pulled Elon within seven with 5:21 left after completing an old-fashioned three-point play to make it a 69-62 game. But that was as close as the Phoenix would get down the stretch, as it could not get over the hump.
With its non-conference slate in the rearview mirror, Elon hits the road for back-to-back games on Jan. 23 at Chattanooga and Jan. 25 at Samford.