CHATTANOOGA, TENN. – The Wofford men's basketball team (9-9, 3-2) fell to the Chattanooga Mocs (11-7, 3-2) 83-81 on a game-winning shot in the final seconds of overtime on Wednesday night at McKenzie Arena.
 
The Terriers were led by three double-digit scorers. Justin Bailey had himself a night, scoring a career-high 22 points powered by five makes from deep. Dillon Bailey posted a season-high of 21 points and scored the final six points in overtime for the team. Kyler Filewich rounded out the group with 12 points. It is the first time since 2023 against Coastal Carolina that two Terriers have scored 20 or more points in the same game (Jeremy Lorenz 22, Dillon Bailey 21).
 
Wofford finished the night at 46.4 percent (26-56) shooting from the floor while sinking 11 three-pointers at a 37.9 percent rate. Chattanooga shot 52.7 percent (29-55) from the field and hit 16 threes at a 48.5 percent clip. The Terriers went 18-of-22 from the charity stripe, the most makes from the line since 22 against UNC Asheville last season (11/25/23).
 
The Terriers won the battle on the glass, outrebounding Chattanooga 31-26. The team pulled down eight offensive rebounds that turned into 11 second chance points. Jeremy Lorenz paced the team with seven rebounds along with six from Kyler Filewich.
 
Wofford dished out 15 assists on 26 made field goals with Jeremy Lorenz leading the way at four. Jackson Sivills and Luke Flynn followed behind with three helpers each. The team forced 11 Chattanooga turnovers, resulting in 22 points. Kyler Filewich led the team with three swipers.
 
Corey Tripp got the scoring started in McKenzie Arena after Jeremy Lorenz found him on a backdoor cut for an easy lay. Justin Bailey cashed in on back-to-back three-pointers in what allowed the team to jump out to a quick 8-0 lead three minutes in.
 
A few plays later Kyler Filewich found the bottom of the net for his first points of the night, kick-starting nine unanswered points for the Terriers. A layup by Jackson Sivills followed by Justin Bailey's third three of the half lifted the lead to 12 points. A pair of free throws from Dillon Bailey made it 17-3 with 14:44 remaining in the half.
 
After Chattanooga cut the lead to nine points, Wofford rattled off an 11-0 run to lead the Mocs 31-11, the team's largest lead of the game. Justin Bailey continued his hot shooting, scoring six of the 11 points in the run. The junior guard posted 15 first half points. The Terriers would head into the break leading Chattanooga 46-34.
 
The Mocs scored five-straight to open the second frame, cutting the deficit to seven points. The five points were just the start of a 20-6 run over the next six minutes of game time as Chattanooga took a 54-52 lead, its first lead of the game. Both teams traded baskets over the next several minutes, with neither group leading by more than three points for the next 13 minutes. During that span there were eight lead changes.
 
Wofford finally took control after Justin Bailey's fifth three-pointer of the game, as the team took a 67-65 lead with 5:09 left in regulation. The Mocs cut it to one, but Justin Bailey hit two free throws to get the lead back out to three. After a few stops on the defensive end, Jeremy Lorenz scored an old-fashioned three-point play to give the Terriers a six-point lead with 1:07 left. Chattanooga hit back-to-back deep balls to tie the game, and the Terriers missed the go-ahead shot at the buzzer to send the game to overtime all knotted up at 73 points.
 
Chattanooga opened the scoring in the extra period, but Kyler Filewich answered on the other end to tie the game once more. The Mocs made one of two free throws to take back the lead, however, Dillon Bailey converted on two free throws to garner another lead change. A layup by Chattanooga followed by one free throw on the next possession gave the Mocs a two-point lead with 1:51 remaining.
 
Two more free throws by Dillon Bailey tied it up, but the Mocs answered with a layup. Once again Dillon Bailey tied it up with 26 seconds left, scoring the final six points for the Terriers. With the shot clock turned off, Chattanooga scored the game-winning basket with three seconds left. Wofford had a great look from three to win the game, but the attempt came up short in what was an 83-81 heartbreaker.
 
The Terriers will be back at Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium on Saturday, January 18, as the team takes on the Mercer Bears at 6:00 p.m. The contest will serve as part two of a double-header with the women's team taking on Western Carolina at 2:00 p.m.