SPARTANBURG S.C. – Down 14 points with 15 minutes remaining in the game, the Wofford men's basketball team stormed past Gardner-Webb 60-58 behind a monstrous 26-point performance by senior
B.J. Mack Friday night in the opening game of the Battle of the Carolinas at Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium. The win evens the Terriers' record at 2-2 to start the season.
Mack led all scorers in the game with his 26 points on 9-of-17 shooting, with 20 points coming in the second half, while also adding six rebounds and a block.
Messiah Jones added another 11 points with six rebounds and an assist.
Jackson Paveletzke continues his stellar start to his career, posting his fourth double-digit performance with 11 points while adding three rebounds, three assists and three steals.
Gardner-Webb started the game on a 7-1 run before
Chase Martin's layup got Wofford its first basket of the game at the 13:40 mark.
The Runnin' Bulldogs continued to apply pressure on offense, extending the lead to 17-10 before
Kyler Filewich got the momentum back to Wofford's side with a basket and free throw for a three-point play.
The Terriers were able to even the score at 19-19 with just under three minutes left in the first half after a Mack layup. GWU ended the half on a 10-4 run to take a 29-23 lead at the half.
GWU caught fire in the opening minutes of the second half, using a 12-4 to take a 14-point lead at 41-27 with 15:16 left in the game.
Mack sparked a ferocious Terrier run ignited by back-to-back Mack baskets, with a Jones layup and Paveletzke three cutting the lead down to five, forcing a timeout by the 'Dogs. Mack continued the run with a three-pointer as the Terriers trailed 39-41 with 12:03 remaining.
After GWU hit a three to push the lead back to five points, Mack netted the next six points to give Wofford its first lead of the game at 45-44 with 9:42 left in the game, capping off the 18-3 run for the Terriers.
After exchanging baskets and leads over the next several minutes, Gardner-Webb regained a slim lead at 55-54 with 2:18 left. Paveletzke converted two free throws with 1:28 remaining to give the lead back to Wofford before Mack pushed the lead to three at 58-55 following a second-chance layup with 48 seconds left in the game.
A free throw with 19 seconds left made the Wofford lead 59-55 before GWU cut the lead down to one at 59-58 with a three-pointer with 12 seconds left. After converting a free throw with nine seconds remaining, the defense came up huge, forcing a tough layup at the buzzer that just went long to seal the Wofford win at 60-58.
Quick Hits
Wofford shot 16-of-57 (28.1%) in the game and 3-of-19 (15.8%) from three-point range.
The Terriers went 25-31 (80.6%) from the free throw line.
Wofford got 15 points off turnovers compared to zero for the 'Dogs.
Gardner-Webb won the paint battle 30-24 and out-scored Wofford 17-10 on bench points.
This is the fifth-straight win over the GWU as Wofford moves to 7-5 all-time against the 'Dogs.
Up Next
The Terriers will face North Carolina A&T on Sunday at Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium. That game will tip-off at 5:00 p.m.
