Western Carolina 72, Furman 53
CULLOWHEE, N.C. - James Sinclair poured in a game-high 20 points, including 14 in the first half, and Western Carolina shot 68 percent from the field in the first half en route to a 72-53 victory over Furman in Southern Conference men’s basketball on Monday night at the Ramsey Center in Cullowhee, N.C.
The victory upped the Catamounts to 7-8 overall and 2-1 in the SoCon, while Furman slipped to 3-10 overall and 1-2 in the league.
Western Carolina forced Furman into five turnovers in the opening eight minutes to claim a 17-7 lead. The Paladins trimmed the margin to 23-17 before the Catamounts used a 20-8 spurt over the final nine minutes of the period to carry a 43-25 lead into intermission.
The Catamounts continued their hot shooting in the second half as Sinclair buried a pair of three-pointers to propel Western Carolina to an 18-5 run over the opening 7:39 of the second half that staked the home team to a 61-30 advantage on Mike Brown’s jumper with 12:21 left.
After hitting 17-of- 25 shots in the first half, Western Carolina finished the game at 57.4 percent from the field, including 8-for-15 from three-point range. The Catamounts scored 17 points off 11 Furman turnovers and managed a 31-23 edge on the glass.
Sinclair hit 8-of-10 shots to pace the Catamounts with 20 points, while point guard Rhett Harrelson connected on 6-of-7 shots to tally 16 points. Brown and Torrion Brummitt added 12 and 10 points, respectively.
Freshman Devin Sibley scored 16 points on 5-of-8 shooting to lead three Paladins in double figures. Sophomore Kris Acox tallied 11 points and six rebounds and freshman Geoff Beans added 11 points.
Furman shot 34.1 percent from the floor and made just 5-of-18 three-point attempts.
Mercer 85, VMI 75
LEXINGTON, Va. - The Mercer Bears made 14 consecutive free throws over a two-minute span late in the game, preventing a VMI comeback and propelling themselves to an 85-75 win over the Keydets in SoCon men's basketball action Monday at Cameron Hall in Lexington, Va.
After Mercer (8-8, 3-0 SoCon) had hit just 13 of 23 free throws entering the final 2:09, Darious Moten made the second of two attempts with 2:09 left to make it 70-59, Bears. VMI (5-10, 1-3) scored 16 points over the remainder of the game in a solid comeback attempt, but Moten, Phillip Leonard and Ike Nwamu combined to go 14 of 15 from the line, including the 14 straight conversions, to close out the Bears' victory.
In defeat, the Keydets were paced by QJ Peterson's 31 points and five assists. Tim Marshall scored 13 points, but the rest of VMI's offense was held to 31 points overall.
Mercer put four players in double figures, led by Moten and Leonard's 21 points apiece. T.J. Hallice added 12 markers and eight rebounds, while Nwamu chipped in 12 points as well.
The first half was a difficult shooting period for both clubs, as it took the Keydets over four minutes to get on the board. Craig Hinton hit a three-pointer with 15:52 remaining in the period to make it 6-3, Mercer.
VMI then took its first lead at the 13:03 mark on a Jordan Weethee three, 11-9, and would lead for the next seven-plus minutes. Neither team led by more than eight in the entire first half, however, and after a Phillip Anglade basket made it 19-13 Keydets, the Bears rallied by holding VMI without a point for nearly seven minutes. A 14-0 run during that time gave the visitors a 27-19 lead with 4:21 left in the half.
The Keydets came right back with a run of their own, however, as a 13-2 push gave VMI a 32-29 advantage with 1:25 left in the half. VMI's lead would be 34-30 at halftime, thanks in large part to 15 points from the bench.
Mercer edged away early in the second half, taking the lead for good after a basket with 16:47 to play, 37-36. The Keydets stayed within striking distance, and in fact, were still within three, 60-57, with 5:24 to go, but a 10-2 run for Mercer, capped by Moten's free throw that started the run of 14 straight makes, gave the Bears their first double-digit lead of the night. The Keydets got no closer than seven the rest of the way.
The visitors finished the game shooting 27-of-49 from the field and 4-of-10 from three-point range. All told, they were 27-of-38 from the foul line, including 21-of-25 in the second half. VMI was 15-of-21 at the charity stripe, 24-of-64 overall and 12-of-35 from long range.
Mercer finished with a 40-16 advantage in points in the paint and a 16-5 edge in second chance points.
The Citadel 85, UNCG 83 (OT)
GREENSBORO, N.C. - Senior guard Ashton Moore netted a game-high 28 points, including five points in the overtime session, as The Citadel snapped a 19-game road losing streak with an 85-83 overtime victory at the Greensboro Coliseum over UNCG. The victory moves the Dogs to 6-8 overall and 1-2 in Southern Conference play.
Moore was the catalyst in regulation after he overcame a knee injury early in the second half to score nine of the final 20 points to send the game into overtime. He opened the scoring binge with a free throw and following a 3-pointer off the hand of Jake Wright, Moore drove past the UNCG (5-11, 1-2 SoCon) defense to put the Dogs in front 65-60 with 5:52 on the clock.
Marshall Harris III provided the next three points for the Bulldogs, who moved their lead to five in regulation.
The combination of a Wright 3-pointer and a jumper by Moore kept The Citadel's cushion at six, 73-67, before a 10-4 Spartans run that included five points by Tevon Saddler drew the game at 77-all.
Moore opened the overtime session with a 3-pointer from the right corner, giving the Bulldogs a one-point lead that they would not relinquish. After a series of missed field goals by UNCG, Horgan converted a free throw to push the lead to 83-79 with 2:33 left.
Moore's two field goals inside the final 1:37 of the game were enough to complete The Citadel's first back-to-back victories over UNCG since the 2008-09 campaign.
Moore topped the 20-point mark for the sixth time this season as he hit 9-of-13 from the floor, 3-of-5 from beyond the arc and was a perfect 7-of-7 at the charity stripe. He becomes the seventh straight Citadel player to top the 20-point plateau against the Spartans since Mike Groselle netted 20 on Feb. 7, 2011.
Also reaching double figures for the Dogs were Horgan (18 points), Harris (12) and Wright (12). Horgan topped double digits after hitting 6-of-11 from the field and 6-of-9 at the free throw line. He also pulled down five rebounds.
Harris added firepower in the backcourt as he came off the bench to finish 6-of-7 from the line and 2-of-2 from beyond the arc. Wright was also a key reserve as he came through with four field goals, all from 3-point range, and three boards.
The Citadel held a 31-28 advantage on the glass behind the efforts of Quinton Marshall, who grabbed a team-high six.
The Dogs closed out the game hitting 26-of-49 from the field, combining to hit 16-of-28 between the second half and overtime. The Citadel posted their second 10 3-point performance of the season as they finished 10-of-18 on the evening.
Saddler led four Spartans in double figures as he finished with 23 points and four rebounds. He managed to finish 10-of-19 from the floor and hit 3-of-4 from the free throw line.
Joining Saddler in double figures was R.J. White (17 points), Kayel Locke (13) and Nicholas Paulos (12). White, who finished 6-of-10 from the floor, was also instrumental on the glass with nine rebounds.
Locke reached double figures primarily due to hitting 7-of-10 at the free throw line, while Paulos proved to be the 3-point threat as he hit 4-of-7 from downtown.
The Bulldogs, who missed their first four field goal attempts of the game, closed out the opening frame by hitting 10-of-21 from the floor and 5-of-8 from beyond the arc. The Citadel also controlled the glass, pulling down 17 rebounds, led by Moore's five.
UNCG streaked out to an early 8-2 lead inside the first three minutes of the contest, but a 3-pointer by Moore followed by a Horgan dunk sparked an 11-5 run that put the Dogs in front by one.
Solid defense by the Cadets coupled with a 3-pointer and three made free throws by Harris extended the lead to 25-15 with 8:33 remaining.
After a 3-pointer by Wright and layups by White and Horgan pushed The Citadel lead to 27-15, UNCG answered with a 7-0 run to pull within five on a pair of White free throws.
The Bulldogs closed out the half with a 3-pointer by Wright and free throws by Moore to hold a seven-point lead.
Wofford 68, Chattanooga 64
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - Karl Cochran scored 27 of his career-high 33 points to key a second half comeback in Wofford's 68-64 Southern Conference win at Chattanooga. His six threes after intermission led a comeback from 14 points down.
The Mocs took the 14-point margin, 39-25, on a Greg Pryor layup with 14:23 to play. Wofford chipped away, but the lead was still 11, 41-30, with 11:42 to go after Casey Jones’ layup.
That’s when Cochran started his dramatics. He nailed bookend three-pointers in a 9-0 spurt over a 1:16 span to get his squad within two, 41-39.
Justin Tuoyo came up big for the home team. His three-point play righted the ship and got the Mocs back up five, 44-39, at 9:49. The Terriers would not go away.
They continued to whittle away at the lead until finally tying it at 48-all on Lee Skinner’s layup at 5:57. It was the first time the score was even since 0-0. Ronrico White answered a mere 20 seconds later with a three. After a Wofford turnover, Pryor nailed a triple of his own at 5:11 to make it a six-point game, 54-48.
The Terriers hit 3-pointers on four straight possessions to take their first lead, 57-56, on Cochran’s fourth of the half at 3:12. White and Eric Garcia traded threes as Wofford had a 60-59 advantage as the clock ticked under two minutes.
Jones drove to the basket and drew the foul. His three-point play at 1:56 got the Mocs back on top 62-60. Cochran tied it with two free throws before Tuoyo’s slam at 1:27 made it 64-62 for the home team.
Cochran found the nets for his fifth trey late in the shot clock to put the Terriers in the lead, 65-64, with 57 seconds to go. The Mocs worked the ball around and looked inside for Tuoyo. The lob was just out of his reach. UTC looked for a defensive stop, but Cochran hit his sixth three under duress with 7.9 to play to seal the 68-64 win.
Tuoyo had a career-high 19 points, while tying his high with 13 boards and adding four blocks. Jones tallied his second straight 20-point effort with 21 to go with seven rebound. White added 10.
Cochran turned in three assists and five steals with his 33 points. Skinner chipped in 10 points sharing team-high honors on the boards with C.J. Neumann with eight apiece. Wofford led 34-31 on the glass with 15 offensive rebounds.
The Mocs throttled the Terriers offense early. Pryor’s layup at 8:08 made it a 20-6 lead at 8:08. Wofford closed to within seven twice before a Tuoyo free throw gave the Mocs a 30-20 halftime advantage.
Wofford was limited to 29.8 percent (11-37) shooting through the first 26 minutes of the contest. Behind Cochran, the Terriers shot 73.7 percent (14-19) over the final 14 minutes. That included making nine of their final 10 beyond the arc, with Cochran going 6-6 down the stretch.
Chattanooga falls to 9-7 on the year, 2-1 in the league. Wofford improves to 11-4, 2-0 in the SoCon, a half-game behind Mercer in first at 3-0.
ETSU 76, Samford 74
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – In a game that saw 14 lead changes and 11 ties, the ETSU men’s basketball team made a critical defensive stop at the buzzer and survived a road trip to Samford with a 76-74 win over the Bulldogs in Southern Conference play Monday evening inside the Pete Hanna Center.
Trailing by three at 72-69 with 2:34 left on the clock, senior guard Rashawn Rembert hit a clutch 3-pointer, blocked a shot by Samford’s Christen Cunningham, grabbed the defensive rebound and then found fellow senior guard Jalen Riley with an outlet pass that led to a pair of free throws.
At that point the Bucs led 74-72, but then after trading foul shots, it was the Bucs who got a final defensive stop by forcing a miss by Cunningham as the buzzer sounded. With the win, ETSU improves to 8-4 overall, 3-1 in SoCon play, while Samford drops to 7-10, 0-4.
It was a night for offense, as the Bulldogs matched the Bucs shooting effort by hitting on 55 percent of their shots from the field and 56 percent from 3-point range. From the foul line, the Bucs also went 16-of-20 (80 percent), while Samford was 17-of-23 (74 percent) from the charity stripe.
On the night, Riley finished with a game-high 26 points, Rembert netted 18, Wilson finished with 17, and sophomore forward A.J. Merriweather (Jackson) had 10. For Samford, Marcus Johnson led the way with 20 points, while three other Bulldogs reached double figures.
It was the first time this season the Bucs have won after trailing at halftime. Samford led 34-32 at the break.
ETSU started strong of the offensive end and built an early lead of 15-5 thanks to eight points from Rembert. Samford cut that advantage to just two at 15-13 with 13 minutes left in the half, and the Bulldogs were able to stay within a single possession of the Bucs for the next seven minutes of game play.
At that point, the Bucs used a 7-0 run to match its largest lead of the game at 32-22, but Samford responded by closing out the first half on a 12-0 run itself and led 34-32 at the break. Both teams shot well in the first half, with ETSU hitting on a 52 percent clip from the field and the Bulldogs finishing at 55 percent.
After the intermission, both teams traded the lead back and forth over the first eight minutes of play and found the game tied at 51 with 11:44 left in regulation. The game stayed that way for the next 10 minutes before Rembert provided the most important sequence of the contest.
Trailing 72-69, Rembert made a 3-pointer and then blocked the shot of Cunningham. He grabbed the rebound and passed to Riley, who was fouled on the other end and ultimately made a pair of free throws to make it a 74-72. Both teams then fouled on four consecutive possessions, leaving the game at 76-74 in favor of the Bucs with 18 seconds left.
Samford had the final possession, but after working for a good shot, Cunningham fired and missed as time expired, and Merriweather pulled down the defensive rebound to secure the win.