Box Score Game Box (pdf)
Game highlights
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – A 24-1 run in the first half propelled the Wofford men’s basketball team to a 72-59 win over Elon on Wednesday night at Benjamin Johnson Arena. The Terriers held the Phoenix scoreless for over nine minutes in the first half as they built a lead that never dropped below eleven points in the second half.
Wofford is 17-11 overall and 10-6 in the SoCon. Elon is 13-13 overall with an 8-7 mark in conference play. The Terriers were led by Kevin Giltner with 26 points, which included six three pointers. Lee Skinner set a new career-high with 15 points and he led the team with seven rebounds. Brad Loesing added twelve points. The Phoenix was led by Jack Isenbarger with 17 points.
“I thought we were as good as we have been in a while on both ends in the first half,” said head coach Mike Young. “I was really impressed defensively to hold them. They are second in the league in points per game and to limit them to 22 points and 32% field goal percentage was a great statistic for us. It was a complete game. Our team paid great attention to detail and it was another good Southern Conference win.”
The Phoenix scored first, but Wofford had an early 5-2 lead after a three by Karl Cochran. Four minutes into play, Elon was ahead 6-5. After trading leads, the Terriers used an 8-0 run to take an 18-11 advantage at the twelve minute mark. A three by Kevin Giltner at the 10:21 mark pushed the lead to 21-11. The run kept going for the Terriers to 16-0 at the 8:29 mark to take a 26-11 after a lay-up by Jarell Byrd.
After taking a 28-11 lead, the Phoenix hit a free throw to end the run at 18-0 with seven minutes left in the first half. A three by Kevin Giltner gave the Terriers a 31-12 lead with 6:30 on the clock. Elon ended a nine minute stretch without a field goal, but Kevin Giltner added another three to make it a 34-12 game at the five minute mark. The Phoenix used a quick 8-0 run to cut the lead to 34-20, but back-to-back shots by Jarell Byrd pushed the lead back to 38-20 with a minute left. Elon scored the final two points of the half to make it a 38-22 score at the break. Wofford shot 59.3% in the first half while holding Elon to 32.0%.
To open the second half, Aerris Smith hit two free throws. Elon answered with a 5-0 run to cut the lead to 40-27 before Karl Cochran hit a three pointer. The Phoenix made it a 43-32 game after a three by Brett Ervin. Wofford responded with a 6-0 run for a 49-32 lead after five minutes. Elon scored the next six points to cut the lead to 49-38, but Lee Skinner hit a three at 12:12 for a 52-38 score.
The Terriers took a 56-40 lead after a jumper by Karl Cochran with under ten minutes left in the second half. Another three by Kevin Giltner gave Wofford a 60-44 advantage with 7:05 on the clock. Four straight free throws by Brad Loesing made it a 64-48 score with 4:31 left in the game. Elon scored the next four points to cut the lead to 64-53 at the 2:26 mark, but Kevin Giltner hit a jumper to make it a 13-point lead. With a minute left, a dunk by Lee Skinner gave Wofford a 70-57 advantage. At the final buzzer, the score was 72-59 in favor of the Terriers.
With six three pointers, Kevin Giltner now has 172 for his career and he has moved into sixth place in school history. Brad Loesing scored 12 points and is at 983 for his career. The Terriers will have a winning record for the fifth straight season and will also have a winning mark in SoCon play for the fourth consecutive season.
Wofford shot 45.3% from the floor while Elon shot 48.1% overall. The Terriers were 9-of-25 from three, while the Phoenix was 4-of-15 from behind the arc. Wofford was 15-of-18 from the free throw line, while Elon was 5-of-9 from the line. Rebounding was tied at 29 for each team.
The Terriers will travel to Charleston Southern on Saturday night for a 7:00 p.m. contest that is part of the Sears BracketBuster event. After a road game at UNC Greensboro on Tuesday, February 21, the final regular season contest will be on Saturday, February 25 against Furman at Benjamin Johnson Arena.
