Box Score Game Box (pdf)
2014 SoCon Tournament Bracket
Aerris Smith Pregame Senior Ceremony
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – In the final regular season game, the Wofford men's basketball team was defeated 73-71 by UNCG on Saturday night at Benjamin Johnson Arena. The Terriers jumped out to an early lead, but the Spartans shot 78.3% from the floor in the second half to take the win.
Wofford is 17-12 to finish the regular season and 11-5 in the Southern Conference. UNCG is 14-17 overall and 7-9 in league play. The Terriers were led by Spencer Collins with 15 points and Karl Cochran added 12 points. The Spartans had 17 points from Kayel Locke, 14 points from Tevon Saddler, and 10 points from Kyle Cain.
"They beat us. Sometimes there is not a lot of explanation in college athletics," said head coach Mike Young. "They played a little bit better than we did. Nothing changes in terms of the team that I am taking to Asheville that I am proud of. We have a chance to do something cool in the conference tournament and we have a week to prepare."
The Spartans missed their first shot of the game and senior Aerris Smith came down with the rebound. The Terriers had a 5-0 lead after three minutes. A wide open three pointer by Jaylen Allen pushed the lead to 10-1 at the 16:05 mark. Spencer Collins put back a missed shot for a 13-3 advantage less than a minute later. A dunk by Justin Gordon pushed it to 15-3 after five minutes of play.
After taking an 18-7 lead on a jumper by Lee Skinner, the Spartans scored the next four points for an 18-11 score with 10:29 left in the first half. UNCG made it a 19-14 game with a three pointer a minute later. Buckets by C.J. Neumann and Spencer Collins gave Wofford a 25-18 lead at the 8:09 mark. A jumper by Jaylen Allen and a three by Karl Cochran pushed the score to 30-19 with 6:06 on the clock. Eric Garcia made it a 7-0 run with a bucket before the Spartans hit a free throw at the 4:12 mark for a 32-20 game. A three by Jaylen Allen was answered by a three by the Spartans to make it 37-25 with two minutes left in the half. UNCG scored the final four points of the half for a 38-29 score at the break.
To open the second half, UNCG hit a jumper that was answered by a bucket from Karl Cochran. After the Spartans cut the lead to 40-33, Karl Cochran and Lee Skinner scored for a 44-33 lead with 17:00 on the clock. The Spartans scored the next ten points to cut the lead to 44-43 at the 13:55 mark. Jaylen Allen ended the run with a free throw, but the Spartans tied the game at 45 with a jumper at 13:10. A pair of free throws and a lay-up off a turnover by John Swinton gave Wofford a 49-45 advantage with 11:55 left in the second half.
The Spartans answered with a three pointer and tied it at 49 a minute later. With 10:24 on the clock, UNCG took a 51-50 lead, but Justin Gordon answered with a dunk on the other end of the floor. The Spartans hit a jumper and free throw to make it a 54-52 score. After a jumper by Spencer Collins, the Spartans hit a three for a 59-55 lead. C.J. Neumann made a lay-up with 8:02 on the clock to make it a 59-57 game. The Spartans added six more points and had a 67-59 advantage with 6:14 left in the half. Eric Garcia had a pair of free throws and a three pointer to cut the lead to 71-66 with 3:12 on the clock.
Down 73-66, the Terriers had a three pointer by Karl Cochran and a lay-up by Justin Gordon to make it a 73-71 game with 1:42 left. With 19 seconds left, Justin Gordon took a charge under the UNCG basket. The Terriers had one last shot by Karl Cochran, but the Spartans got the rebound and held on for the win.
Wofford shot 49.1% from the floor and UNCG was 61.7% overall, a season-high for an opponent. The Terriers were 5-of-15 from with three, while the Spartans were 4-of-6 from behind the arc. UNCG was 11-of-15 from the line while Wofford was 12-of-22 on free throws. The Spartans had a 30-23 lead on the boards. Wofford had only four turnovers and 16 assists.
Prior to the game Wofford honored Aerris Smith, the lone senior on this year's squad. Smith has played in 104 career games and been a part of 70 wins with the Terriers.
Wofford has secured a bye for the Southern Conference Tournament and will begin postseason play on Saturday, March 8, in Asheville. The Terriers finished tied for third in the standings with Elon and took the third seed by defeating the Phoenix earlier this week. Wofford will play the winner of the UNCG/The Citadel game on Saturday at 8:30 p.m.
