Dec. 17, 2006

Final Stats

Dayton, Ohio - A six minute drought in the first half - which led to a 14-0 run by Dayton - allowed the homestanding Flyers to hand Western Carolina a 66-55 loss Saturday night at the UD Arena, ending a four-game Catamount road swing. Dayton (9-1) won its seventh straight and was led by Brian Roberts' double-double (17 points and 10 rebounds).

Western Carolina (4-4) was led by junior Arnold Gore, who missed the first seven games of the season due to NCAA transfer rules. The forward scored 15 points and grabbed five rebounds. The Catamounts additionally got 12 points from Kyle Greathouse. The senior guard, playing before a large contingency of his fans from Lancaster, Ohio, made four 3-pointers to give him 174 treys for his career to tie current NBA star Kevin Martin for third on the WCU all-time list.

Gore's contribution came early, scoring Western's first points of the game, as well as the first points of the game overall. Three-pointers by Greathouse and Brigham Waginger, as well as a pair of layups by Nick Aldridge would put Western up seven (15-8) with 10:29 left in the first half. However, the Catamounts would not score again until a 3-pointer by Antonio Russell at the 4:13 mark. Over the span, the Flyers went on a 14-0 run to take a lead (22-15) they would not relinquish the remainder of the contest. Down 11 inside the final minute before intermission, Western's Jake Robinson was fouled and made two free throws to make the score 33-24 at the break.

The Catamounts built on that to start the second half as Aldridge made a layup 12 seconds into the second half as WCU opened the period with a 7-3 run to trim its deficit to three (36-33). Western suffered through another scoring drought, not putting points on the board over the next five minutes. However, the Catamount defense kept Dayton within range with the Flyers only taking an 11-point lead with 10 minutes to go. Later, Robinson made a break away layup to put WCU within seven (46-39) but would get no closer.

Dayton would push its lead to as many as 15 twice, but a string of missed free throws down the stretch allowed Western a chance to make the game interesting. However, after a nice defensive stop by Western, Dayton would get an offensive rebound and basket to help seal the victory.

For Western, Aldridge pulled down seven rebounds with Negus McKenna adding eight points, six boards and three assists. Russell was held to just five points, but he dished out four assists. In addition to Roberts' double-double, Dayton was led by Norman Plummer (15 points) and Marcus Johnson (13 points).

Western Carolina will turn around to host The Citadel Monday (Dec. 18). The game not only snaps WCU's four-game road swing, but will be Western's first home Southern Conference game of the season. Tipoff is set for 7:00 pm.