Box Score Game Box (pdf)
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SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Wofford men’s basketball team defeated UVa.-Wise 69-66 on Saturday night at Benjamin Johnson Arena. The Cavaliers were within one point with 14 seconds remaining, but two free throws from Kevin Giltner sealed the victory. Four Terriers scored in double figures in the contest.
With the win, the Terriers improve to 6-4 overall. The contest was an exhibition game for the 3-6 Highland Cavaliers. Wofford was led by Kevin Giltner with 17 points. Brad Loesing and Aerris Smith had 14 points each, while Drew Crowell added 13 points. Karl Cochran led all rebounders with a career-high ten boards. The Cavaliers were led by Travis Berry with 27 points, which included 5-of-9 from three.
“There is nothing easy in college basketball,” said head coach Mike Young. “We won the game and move on and will be better next Sunday.”
The Terriers scored first and had a 5-0 lead after a three by Kevin Giltner. The Cavaliers cut the lead to 9-8 five minutes into the game. A 6-0 run by Wofford extended the advantage to 15-8 before UVa.-Wise answered with a 7-0 run of their own to tie the game at 15 with 11:42 on the clock. At the ten-minute mark, UVa.-Wise took a 17-16 lead before two free throws by Lee Skinner began a 7-0 run for Wofford to lead 23-17 with eight minutes left in the first half.
With six minutes to go in the opening half, the Cavaliers cut the lead to 25-22. The Terriers lead was only one point after a jumper by Josh Jordan with 5:37 on the clock. Wofford answered with a 9-0 run for a 34-24 advantage with three minutes left in the half. UVa.-Wise responded by scoring the next seven points to cut the lead back to 34-31 at the break. Wofford shot only 38.7% in the first half, while the Cavaliers were at 47.6%.
To open the second half, Drew Crowell hit two jumpers for Wofford and a 38-31 lead. Back-to-back three pointers by the Cavaliers cut the lead to 38-37 three minutes into play. The Terriers then had four straight points by Aerris Smith to take a 42-37 advantage. UVa.-Wise then took a 45-43 lead on a jumper and free throw by Norris Gaskins at 12:59.
The Cavaliers had a 48-43 advantage with 10:56 left in the second half. Wofford ended the 7-0 run by UVa.-Wise with a pair of free throws by Drew Crowell. The Terriers tied the game at 49 after a lay-up by Aerris Smith with nine minutes on the clock and a lay-up by Drew Crowell regained the lead. A three by Travis Berry gave the Cavaliers a 54-51 advantage. A three by Brad Loesing tied the game at 56 with six minutes to play.
Wofford had a 7-2 run for a 63-58 lead with ninety seconds remaining. Travis Berry hit a three with 36 seconds on the clock to cut the Wofford lead to 65-63. After two free throws by Brad Loesing made it a 67-63 game, a jumper and free throw by Travis Berry cut the lead to 67-66 with 13 seconds left. Kevin Giltner added two more free throws for a 69-66 final score.
The Terriers shot 41.1 % from the floor for the evening, while UVa.-Wise shot 46.8% overall. Wofford finished 4-14 from behind the arc, while the Cavaliers went 6-11 from three. Wofford was 19-25 from the free throw line, while UVa.-Wise went 16-25 from the charity stripe. The Terriers out-rebounded UVa.-Wise by a 37-26 margin.
After taking a week off for exams, the Terriers will wrap up a five game home stand on Sunday, December 18 against Jacksonville in a 3:00 p.m. contest.
