Samford 70, Appalachian State 56
ASHEVILLE, N.C. --- No. 8 seed Samford cruised to a 70-56 win over No. 9 Appalachian State in the U.S. Cellular Center. The contest kicked off the 94th Southern Conference Tournament.
Tim Williams was the man for the Bulldogs. He posted game highs of 21 points and 11 rebounds. Michael Bradley added 14 points, while Connor Miller chipped in 11 for the victors.
Five Appalachian State players reached double digits with Tab Hamilton and Frank Eaves leading the way with 11. Michael Obacha, Tommy Spagnolo and Ty Toney each had 10 with Obacha grabbing a team-best nine boards.
After trailing by six early in the second half, the Mountaineers scored on three consecutive possessions to tie the score at 31-all on a layup by Obacha. Samford took control from there.
The Bulldogs went on a 15-4 run to go up by 11, 46-35, on Raijon Kelly’s jumper at 13:13. The lead swelled to 12 before App chipped away late in the half. Hamilton’s layup at 5:19 cut the margin to six, 57-51.
Williams answered 16 seconds later. His emphatic slam off a nice look from Jordan Capps righted the ship for the Bulldogs. His dunk keyed three straight scoring possessions to pull away for the 14-point triumph.
Samford moves on to face No. 1 seed Davidson at Noon in ExploreAsheville.com Arena inside the U.S. Cellular Center. The Bulldogs were 0-1 against the Wildcats this season. The quarterfinal contest airs on ESPN3.com.
Georgia Southern 65, Furman 50
ASHEVILLE, N.C. --- No. 7 seed Georgia Southern (14-18) claimed a wire-to-wire 65-50 win over No. 10 Furman (9-21) in the second game of the 94th Southern Conference Tournament in the U.S. Cellular Center. The Eagles scored the game’s first eight points and never looked back.
Jelani Hewitt tallied 20 points to lead all scorers adding eight rebounds, five assists and three steals. Tre Bussey and Angel Matias also reached double figure with 14 and 10 points, respectively.
Charlie Reddick had a strong game for the Paladins with 18 points and seven rebounds. He shot five-for-seven from the floor and made all seven free throw attempts. Stephen Croone chipped in 12 points, five rebounds and four assists.
The Eagles used a 14-2 spurt to start the second half to build a 20-point cushion. Hewitt’s dunk at 13:20 put his squad in firm control, 49-29. The lead swelled to as many as 24, 59-35, on Bussey’s jumper in the lane with 6:33 to go.
Furman answered with a 9-0 run cutting it to 15, 59-44, on three Reddick free tosses at 4:14. That was as close as it would get as GSU held on for the win.
Georgia Southern was dominant inside this afternoon with a 38-16 points in the paint advantage. It also recorded 13 steals, the most by a Paladins opponent this season.
GSU meets No. 2 seed Chattanooga at 6 p.m., in ExploreAsheville.com Arena inside the U.S. Cellular Center. The Eagles won the lone meeting with the Mocs this season. The quarterfinal contest airs on ESPN3.com.
The Citadel 86, UNCG 76
ASHEVILLE, N.C. --- Ashton Moore and Matt Van Scyoc combined for 44 points to lead No. 11 seed The Citadel (7-25) to an 86-76 win over No. 6 UNCG (14-18) in the third game of the 94th Southern Conference Tournament in the U.S. Cellular Center. It’s the third straight win for the Bulldogs and first upset by a lower seed in today’s first round.
Moore’s 24 points led all scorers as Van Scyoc netted 20. The Bulldogs were hot making 52.6 percent on 10-of-19 from three-point range. They shot 52.0 percent (26-50) overall.
Kyle Cain led the Spartans with 18 points. R.J. White and Tevon Saddler added 15 apiece, while Kayel Locke chipped in 12. Cain, Locke and White keyed a 36-22 effort on points in the paint.
It was a back-and-forth game early with six ties and four lead changes in the first eight-plus minutes. The last tie, 13-all, came on a Quinton Marshall slam dunk on an alley oop pass from Warren Sledge coming out of a timeout at 11:44 in the first half.
Van Scyoc’s trey on the very next possession gave the Bulldogs the lead for good, 16-13. They led by as many as 12 before settling for a nine-point advantage at the break, 39-30.
Jordan Potts’ jumper 38 seconds into the second half got the Spartans to within seven, 39-32. The Citadel scored seven unanswered points to extend the lead to 14, 46-32, on two Van Scyoc free throws.
UNCG whittled away the lead to eight three times, the last on a Saddler jumper at 10:10. The Citadel would not be denied.
The Bulldogs were a season-high (against a DI opponent) plus-seven on the boards (36-29) with P.J. Horgan grabbing a career-high 12. The effort allowed UNCG just four second chance points.
The Citadel takes on No. 3 seed Wofford at 8:30 p.m., Saturday in ExploreAsheville.com Arena inside the U.S. Cellular Center. The Bulldogs are 0-2 in their meetings with the Terriers this season. The quarterfinal contest airs on ESPN3.com.