Feb. 6, 2006

Final Stats

Statesboro, Ga. - Western Carolina had two rallies, but four turnovers later ultimately led to Georgia Southern pulling out a 72-67 victory Monday night at Hanner Fieldhouse. The Catamounts fall to 11-14 overall and 5-5 in the Southern Conference, while the Eagles (16-7, 7-3) take sole possession of first place in the SoCon South Division.

The Catamounts used a 22-6 run to end the first half and take a 33-24 lead at the break. Western used balanced scoring to get its advantage with six players scoring four or more points. During the run, which started at the 10:26 mark and Georgia Southern leading 18-11, Western held the Eagles to only three field goals. Negus McKenna looked to give WCU extra momentum going into the locker room, getting an offensive tip-in as time expired.

However, the Eagles started the second half with an 11-1 run, highlighted by five points from Elton Nesbitt, who was held to just four points on 2-of-8 shooting in the first half. Georgia Southern would eventually out-score Western 30-10 over the first 11 and a half minutes, leading 54-43. From that point, Western held the Eagles scoreless over the next three minutes, going on a 15-2 run. Corey Muirhead got things started with two free throws. Eric Wilson scored four points on offensive rebounds, while Kyle Greathouse and Trey Hopkins each mande 3-pointers. Down one, Antonio Russell made a layup and free throw with 5:20 remaining to give the Cats their first lead since early in the second half (58-56). The lead would bounce back and forth over the next two minutes with the score being tied at 60-60 after two Russell free throws.

Georgia Southern was not able to pull away late as it only sank 8-of-12 from the free throw line inside the final 1:39. After Louis Graham only made 1-of-2 at the line to put GSU up four with 1:39 left, Russell hit a layup, cutting WCU's deficit to two (65-63). Western forced a turnover on the ensuing possession, only to give it right back and foul GSU. Nesbitt missed both free throws, giving the Cats hope. However, WCU turned the ball over once again and Nesbitt did not make the same mistake, sinking both free throws for a four-point Eagle lead (67-63) with 28 seconds remaining. Western quickly scored on a David Berghoefer layup. Dwayne Foreman was fouled and put his team back up by four with two from the charity stripe. A third Catamount turnover with 13 seconds left paved the way for Nesbitt to make two more free throws and give GSU a six-point cushion. Berghoefer once again scored with five seconds left to get the WCU deficit back to four. Nesbitt provided the final margin, making 1-of-2 at the line with nine-tenths of a second remaining.

The Eagles, who only shot 39.3 percent from the field in the first half, rallied to make 55.6 percent of their shots in the final 20 minutes while out-rebounding the Catamounts 39-29 for the game. Western was also victimized themselves by committing 11 of its 16 turnovers in the second half.

Nesbitt finished as the game leader with 22 points, making 7-of-20 shots from the field (including 1-of-8 from 3-point range) and 7-of-11 at the line. Donte Gennie contributed 16 points, while Jimmy Tobias had 10 points and Louis Graham had 10 rebounds. For the Catamounts, Berghoefer led the way with 16 points and Russell scored 15 off the bench. Jared Outing was WCU's leading rebounder with seven.

Western Carolina will be off for the next six days, returning to action next Monday (Feb. 13) to host rival Appalachian State for Purple and Gold Day II. Tipoff is set for 7:00 pm.