Box Score Game Box (pdf)
Game Highlights
BOONE, N.C. - On a cold and snowy Saturday afternoon, the Wofford men’s basketball team defeated Appalachian State 66-64 at the Holmes Center. The Terriers used a 9-1 run to open the second half as they built a 15-point lead, but had to hold on for a two-point win as the Mountaineers battled back.
Wofford is 16-11 overall and 9-6 in the SoCon. Appalachian State is 10-15 overall with a 6-9 mark in conference play. The Terriers had four players in double figures, led by Brad Loesing with 16 points. Kevin Giltner had 13 points and Lee Skinner added eleven points. Drew Crowell had ten points and a game-high nine rebounds. The Mountaineers were led by Mike Neal with 15 points.
“This was a hard fought gut-check win for our team,” said head coach Mike Young. “They made a lot of plays and it was a great win for our program. A fourteen differential on rebounds was a big deal because that is more shots for our team and less shots for them. We had 14 turnovers which was uncharacteristic, but we had the win and the bus ride home will be a lot nicer than it has been the last couple of times.”
The Terriers took an early 4-2 lead after two buckets by Aerris Smith. After four minutes of play, the score was 6-5 in favor of Wofford. At 14:18, the Mountaineers took a 9-8 lead after two free throws. With the score tied at ten, Wofford scored the next five points to take a 15-10 lead after a three by Karl Cochran with 11:42 on the clock. The Mountaineers tied the game at 15, but then Brad Loesing hit a three to give the Terriers an 18-15 advantage with eight minutes left in the half.
Appalachian State scored the seven of the next nine points for a 22-20 lead after a three by Mitch Woods with 3:45 remaining in the first half. Wofford tied the game at 22 with a lay-up by Brad Loesing. Lee Skinner drained a three for a 25-23 lead for the Terriers, but the Mountaineers tied it at 25 with a minute remaining. Drew Crowell hit a lay-up to give Wofford a 27-25 lead at the break.
To start the second half, Aerris Smith scored first to make it a 29-25 lead for the Terriers. Another lay-up by Drew Crowell and a wide open three by Kevin Giltner pushed the advantage to 34-36 at the 17:29 mark. Wofford made it a 41-29 game two minutes later after a put-back by Drew Crowell. The Terriers were able to take a 15-point lead at 46-31 six minutes into play.
The Mountaineers cut the lead to 49-40 with twelve minutes left, but Kevin Giltner answered with his third three of the second half for a 52-40 advantage. Appalachian State chipped away and cut the lead to 55-47 with 7:45 left in the game. The Mountaineers made it a one point game at 59-58 after a four-point play by Tab Hamilton with 4:48 on the clock.
With the lead at two points, Brad Loesing hit a three for the Terriers to take a 65-60 advantage with 1:05 left on the clock. After a made jumper by the Mountaineers, the Terriers missed a shot and Appalachian State grabbed the rebound and Andre Williamson made it a 65-64 game with 14.5 seconds remaining. Lee Skinner made one of two free throws with 13 seconds left for a two point game. On the final possession by the Mountaineers, Karl Cochran blocked the first shot attempt by Mike Neal and then Omar Carter’s shot missed and Kevin Giltner grabbed the rebound to end the game with a 66-64 final score.
Wofford shot 45.5% from the floor while Appalachian State shot 40.0% overall. The Terriers were 7-of-16 from three, while the Mountaineers were 4-of-13 from behind the arc. Wofford was 9-of-17 from the free throw line, while Appalachian State was 20-of-29 from the line. The Terriers had a commanding 39 to 25 lead in rebounds.
