Box Score Game Box (pdf)
Inside Wofford Basketball
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Wofford men’s basketball team ended the regular season with a 69-62 win over The Citadel on Saturday night at Benjamin Johnson Arena. The Terriers led by as many as 17 points in the second half, but the Bulldogs cut the advantage to two points with five minutes remaining before Wofford put the game away.
Wofford moves to 13-18 on the season and 7-11 in the Southern Conference to finish in third place in the South Division. The Citadel is 8-21 overall and 5-13 in the SoCon. The Terriers were led by Lee Skinner who tied a career high with 21 points and added 11 rebounds for his sixth double-double of the year. Karl Cochran added 17 points, while Spencer Collins scored 16. The Bulldogs had 17 points and seven rebounds from Mike Groselle.
The game marked the final home contest for senior guard Taylor Wagener and senior manager Jay Reid. Wagener had five points, two rebounds, two steals, and an assist in his final game at Benjamin Johnson Arena.
“We hung in there and made enough plays to win the game,” said head coach Mike Young. “I thought we had some of their perimeter shots guarded but they made six second half threes which is disappointing. Our team has done such a great job of protecting the arc and contesting that shot, but we were asking so much of them with Mike Groselle down there that we found ourselves a step away from where we needed to be when it comes back to the perimeter. They got a couple of them down but we did a nice job to keep them to 37% from the floor. We will take it and move along.”
Wofford opened the game with a three pointer by senior Taylor Wagener and had an early 5-0 lead. The Citadel scored the next seven points, including a three pointer, for a 7-5 advantage after four minutes of play. The game was tied at seven, nine, and eleven before a lay-up by Lee Skinner gave the Terriers a 13-11 lead at the 10:48 mark. Wofford used a quick 6-0 run, capped by a steal and lay-up by Taylor Wagener, to take a 21-13 lead with 7:06 remaining in the half.
After The Citadel cut the lead to six points, Karl Cochran drained a three for a 24-15 advantage at the 4:58 mark of the first half. Lay-ups by Indiana Faithfull and Kevin Hickson kept the Terriers in front by ten points. Karl Cochran added a three pointer with 2:38 on the clock to give Wofford a 31-18 lead. Cochran hit the final shot of the first half for a 33-20 advantage at the break.
To start the second half, Wofford went on a 7-3 run for a 40-23 lead at the 15:23 mark. After a couple of three pointers by the Bulldogs, the advantage was cut to 42-31 with 12:56 on the clock. The Terriers scored the next five points to push the lead back to 47-31 and Wofford had a 49-32 advantage with 11:44 left in the second half. The Citadel then used a 10-0 run that included two three pointers to make it a 49-42 game before a lay-up by Lee Skinner. Four straight free throws for the Terriers pushed the lead back to twelve points at 55-43, but the Bulldogs then used an 8-0 run for a 55-51 score with 6:49 remaining.
The Citadel cut the lead to two points before Karl Cochran hit a three for a 60-55 score with five minutes remaining. Wofford added a bucket when Spencer Collins put back a missed shot for a 62-55 lead at the 3:25 mark. After two free throws by the Bulldogs, Karl Cochran added a bucket for a 64-57 lead with ninety seconds left. The Citadel cut the lead to 64-60 with 27 seconds on the clock, but Lee Skinner hit two free throws for a 66-60 score. Spencer Collins rebounded a missed shot by the Bulldogs and he made a free throw for a seven point lead. A dunk by Karl Cochran with one second left gave the Terriers the 69-62 victory.
Wofford shot 50.9% from the floor while The Citadel shot 37.8% overall. The Terriers were 4-of-15 from with three, while the Bulldogs were 7-of-17 from behind the arc. The Citadel was 21-of-29 from the line while Wofford was 11-of-14 on free throws. The Bulldogs had a 30 to 28 lead on the glass and each team had eleven turnovers. Aerris Smith fouled out for Wofford.
The Southern Conference Tournament will begin on March 8 in Asheville, N.C. Wofford has secured the eighth seed and will play Georgia Southern on Friday at 11:30 a.m. at U.S. Cellular Center. The winner of the game will play #1 seed Davidson on Saturday at noon.
