CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – Three Terriers finished in double figures to highlight a cold shooting night in Chattanooga, Tenn., as the Chattanooga Mocs used balanced scoring to drop Wofford at McKenzie Arena on Wednesday night, 71-60. Both teams traded buckets throughout the second half, though, a late Chattanooga run would bust a double-figure cushion with less than a minute remaining to pull away from the Terriers.
 
Wofford drops to 12-9 overall and 4-5 in the Southern Conference, as Chattanooga moves to 17-4 and a 7-1 mark in league play.
 
"We had some good looks. Just didn't knock them down. And then we took some homerun cuts that a good team like Chattanooga is going to pounce on, and they did," said head coach Jay McAuley. "They got a little bit of a lead, but my team's tough. They kept it in there, kept it close. Two, three possessions and then we've got to learn as a young basketball team to not try to do it on our own in those moments, but to rely on just doing the simple things and moving that ball and making the easy play."
 
"They want to do it. It's just not what we're conditioned to do yet and I've got to do a better job getting them there," added McAuley. "When we do, we're going to have a heck of a ball club moving forward."
 
The Terriers shot 40 percent from the field in the second half to finish the contest 20-of-59 from the floor (33.9%) and 9-of-34 from beyond the arc (26.5%). Wofford capitalized from the charity stripe though, finishing a perfect 11-for-11 from the free-throw line on the night.
 
Junior B.J. Mack recorded his 10^th consecutive game in double figures and led the Terriers in scoring for the sixth time in seven games with a game-high 18 points, including a perfect 6-for-6 from the line, seven rebounds and four assists.
 
Senior guard Ryan Larson added 14 points on 4-of-7 shooting from 3-point range, while recording four rebounds, three assists and two steals. Sophomore Max Klesmit rounds out the Terriers in double digits with 13 points and four rebounds.
 
Chattanooga shot 49.1 percent overall and hit 11-of-25 from deep range (44%) for the contest, led by Malachi Smith (18), David Jean-Baptiste (13) and Darius Banks (13).
 
The Terriers opened the contest on a strong note, seeing Ryan Larson bury a three on the opening possession prior to a Klesmit layup and Morgan Safford 3-pointer from the right wing holding a 10-5 lead. B.J. Mack would go on to finish a hook shot in the paint for a 14-13 edge, as the Mocs' Malachi Smith came down and nailed a step-back three to claim Chattanooga's first lead, 16-14.
 
Patterson drove inside the paint to find Larson on the left wing for his second trey of the frame (18-17), though, UTC's Darius Banks paced the Mocs with their next five-straight to push a brief six-point cushion, 23-17. Another Banks score capped a 9-2 Mocs run (27-19), as a Mocs 3-pointer and AJ Caldwell layup pushed Chattanooga's largest lead at 32-21. Mack would find Larson for a layup inside within the final minute to head into the intermission trailing 32-23.
 
Klesmit paced the Terriers to open the second half, corralling a steal for a layup on the other end before knocking down a three to come within eight points, 36-28, at a Wofford timeout. Free throws from Patterson crept within six (36-30), as a Jean-Baptiste three reclaimed a nine-point edge for the Mocs, 39-30. A David Appelgren hook on the right block ensued, though, Jean-Baptiste would deliver another timely 3-pointer for the Mocs to extend a 10-point cushion, 42-32.
 
The Terriers continued to claw at the Mocs' lead, seeing Klesmit rise for an and-one 3-pointer with contact and converting at the line (42-36), though, a Malachi Smith and-one finish on the other end answered by the under-12 media timeout, 45-36 (11:50). Coming out of the break, both squads exchanged baskets, as B.J. Mack capitalized on a find from Larson for three before knocking down a pair at the line to come within five, 48-43, by the 9:51 mark.
 
Another finish and pair of free throws from Mack summoned a 54-47 spread prior to a Mocs 5-0 spurt regaining a double-digit lead, 59-47. Larson would connect from downtown on back-to-back treys with 3:43 remaining (62-55), however, Chattanooga rallied to hold off the Terriers and finish the contest connecting on seven of its final eight shots from the floor to bust a 9-0 run, capped by an AJ Caldwell 3-pointer with 56 seconds left. The late run extended UTC's largest lead of the night at 16 points, 71-55, en route to ultimately walking away with the 71-60 decision at the end of regulation.
 
The Mocs hit 51.9 percent of its looks in the second half, including 40 percent of its 3-pointers (6-of-15).
 
Despite the loss, Wofford held the edge in rebounds, 34-32, while tallying 11 second-chance points to the Mocs' five.
 
Wofford (12-9, 4-5 SoCon) returns to Spartanburg to host UNCG in the second game of Saturday's (Jan. 29) doubleheaders at the Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m., as the Wofford women's basketball team will host ETSU prior at 2 p.m.