Feb. 5, 2001

Box Score

Cullowhee, N.C. - Western Carolina trimmed a 13-point second-half deficit to two, 56-54 with 3:10 left, but could not get any closer, falling 63-59 to Southern Conference rival Appalachian State Monday night in front of the largest Ramsey Center crowd of the year, 3,121.

Western Carolina put three players into double-digit scoring. Willie Freeman led the way with 14 points and eight boards, with Cory Largent and Casey Rogers adding 13 and 12 points, respectively. Largent collected seven rebounds, while Rogers had three assists, three steals, and a pair of boards.

WCU took the early advantage on a Largent three-pointer, but was quickly answered by ASU's Noah Brown. The Cats took their largest, and last, lead at 11-8 with 14:42 remaining of the first half. Appalachian State led by as many as six in the first and took a slim three-point, 28-25, advantage at the break.

Appalachian State started out the second half on a 14-4 run and gain a 13-point lead, 42-29, its largest advantage of the evening. However, Western Carolina responed with an 11-0 run over the next four and a half minutes to cut the lead to two, 42-20, midway through the half.

The Mountaineers pushed their advantage to six after and held on down the stretch, as WCU missed four out of its last five shots over the final two and a half minutes.

Appalachian State was paced by Brown. The freshman guard led all scorers with 20 points. All six of his successful field goals came from behind the 3-point arc.

Sophomore forward Josh Shehan and junior Donald Payne recorded double-doubles for the Mountaineers. Payne had 11 points and 10 rebounds, with Shehan finishing with 10 points and 11 boards.

The Cats fell to 4-20 on the season, 2-9 in the Southern Conference. Appalachian State (9-15, 6-5 SoCon) has now won five out of its last six, including three straight.

Western Carolina will play its next two games on the road. The Cats return to action Saturday, Feb. 10, at UNC Greensboro and travel to Davidson on Feb. 12. WCU will finish the regular season with three consecutive home games (Feb. 17 versus Chattanooga at 7 p.m., Feb. 19 versus Wofford at 8 p.m., and Feb. 24 versus UNC Greensboro at 7 p.m.).