SPARTANBURG, S.C. - The Wofford men's basketball team lost to the Chattanooga Mocs on Wednesday night, 67-76, after leading by as much as ten points at Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium.
The Terriers (11-7, 3-2) were led by
Kahmare Holmes' 22 points, seven rebounds and two steals.
Brian Sumpter also had seven rebounds, adding two blocks along the way.
Cayden Vasko had six assists.
"I thought we played harder defensively [than we had]," said head coach
Kevin Giltner. "We made some winning plays. I thought we were more locked in, but you can do all the right things and still lose."
How It Happened
Brian Sumpter opened the scoring in the game after being found by
Cayden Vasko on a cutting run. The Mocs did not find their first bucket until three minutes into the game, missing their first three attempts on the night. Neither team could find an offensive footing in the game as Wofford held a slight advantage, 11-9, entering the under-eight media timeout.
Chattanooga found a string of offense to bring them out in front after an 11-0 run.
Chace Watley was able to snap their run with a second-chance layup. This lit a fire under the Terriers as they went on an 11-0 run of their own with three different scorers finding points. Five quick points from UTC gave them a one-point advantage heading into the last four minutes of the half at 25-24.
The final stretch of the half saw Chattanooga drain a three, but a
Kahmare Holmes lay-up and
Nils Machowski going two for two from the line tied up the game. Vasko gave Wofford the lead again after a turnaround jumper. With one minute on the clock, the Mocs called a timeout. They were able to tie the game back up after grabbing the second chance make. Both teams failed to convert on their final possessions, sending them to the locker room in a deadlock, 30-30.
Holmes drained a three-pointer to open Terrier scoring for the second half, giving them a lead. It took 2 minutes and 30 seconds before the next bucket for Wofford. They went five for six from the free throw line in that time. UTC struggled to find field goals over the same stretch, making just one in the first six minutes. Wofford went into the first media timeout of the half with a 42-34 lead thanks to an 8-1 run. Holmes scored six of the eight points.
Chattanooga finally found the field goal they were looking for, only to be cancelled out by a three-pointer from Vasko. The teams continued to trade points as Wofford looked to grab their first ten-point lead of the game, which finally came from a corner three-pointer from Holmes. A 7-0 run from UTC saw the Wofford lead shrink drastically, leading to a timeout from the Terrier bench. Their momentum did not stop as they would tie the game back up in the next possession with a three-pointer.
With four minutes remaining in the game, Chattanooga gained the lead, 59-58.
Kahmare Holmes made a crucial steal, converting a slam dunk on the other end, before UTC could snatch the lead back on the next possession. Two corner threes from the Mocs gave them a five-point cushion with a minute left. Chattanooga went seven for nine from the line as Wofford was unable to create offensive momentum in the final stretch. The final whistle blew, 67-76.
Inside the Numbers
Up Next
The Terriers travel down I-85 to Greenville, South Carolina, on Saturday afternoon to face the Furman Paladins. The 161st meeting between the teams will take place in Timmons Arena, with tip-off set for 5 p.m. Listen along on the Wofford Digital Network or watch on ESPN+.
