Jan. 9, 2006

Final Stats

Boone, N.C. - Western Carolina, who trailed by 16 at halftime, worked its deficit to just five with 6:35 left to play. However, Appalachian State's D.J. Thompson hit two 3-pointers and four free throws down the stretch to lead the Mountaineers to a 68-53 victory Monday night at the Holmes Center on a game that was televised by Fox Sports Net South.

Thompson finished with a game-high 18 points, while Jeremy Clayton and Doug McLaughlin-Williams each had double-doubles to push App State's record to 6-9 overall and 1-2 in the Southern Conference. Clayton scored 14 points and had 12 rebounds with McLaughlin-Williams getting 12 and 11.

Appalachian State scored the first points of the second half and would eventually lead by as many as 19 (43-24) after a Clayton layup with 18:44 left in the game. However, Western (7-10, 1-1 SoCon) switched defenses, moving to a 1-3-1 zone, and only allowed four field goals and three free throws over the next 13 minutes. During that time, the Catamounts chipped away at the deficit with balanced scoring. Jared Outing got Western to within five (52-47) on a tip-in.

Clayton got the Mountaineers back on track with an offensive rebound and put back with 5:03 left. The teams traded baskets over the next three minutes until Thompson drained a trey and, after the Catamounts missed a shot, was sent to the line, hitting one. App State got the rebound on the second free throw and Thompson would get fouled once again, hitting two with 1:07 left and putting the game out of reach.

In the first half, Antonio Russell hit a 3-pointer at the 8:09 mark, but the Mountaineers would go on a 18-1 run to go up 20 (33-13) with 3:23 left before the break.

Appalachian State out-rebounded Western 47-36 and held the Catamounts to just 29.7 percent shooting from the floor. Western, one of the top 3-point shooting teams in the SoCon, only made 5-of-25 from beyond the arc for a 20 percent clip.

Western Carolina was led by David Berghoefer, who registered his second double-double of the season with 11 points and a season-high 14 rebounds. Negus McKenna provided a spark off the bench in the second half, finishing with 10 points, six rebounds and three steals in just 15 minutes of play.

The Catamounts will return to action Saturday (Jan. 14), hosting Chattanooga. Prior the men's game, which starts at 7 pm, the Lady Cats will host the Lady Mocs with tipoff set for 4 pm. Also prior to the men's game, Western will have two ceremonies. First, the Catamounts will recognize David Berghoefer, who scored his 1,000th point on Dec. 31 at Georgia. Then, Western will unveil the retired jersey of Mel Gibson from the rafters of the Ramsey Center. Gibson, an All-American in 1963 and is the highest Catamount to ever be drafted by the NBA, going 17th overall to the Los Angeles Lakers, was initially honored this past fall during Western's Athletics Hall of Fame induction.