Feb. 20, 2010

Box Score

Kent, Ohio - With Western Carolina leading by six, 62-56, with four minutes to play, Kent State outscored the Catamounts 15-to-2 over the next three minutes to erase the deficit and take a seven-point lead before surviving an 8-to-3 spurt by WCU in the final minute to score the 74-72 victory Saturday night at the M.A.C. Center.

KSU's Justin Greene scored 21 points and Tyree Evans added 14 points, 13 of which came in the first half. Chris Singletary and Rodriguez Sherman each had 11 for the Golden Flashes (20-8), who have won two games in a row and eight of their past 10 including seven-straight at home.

Trailing 71-64 with 51 seconds to play, the Catamounts' Jake Robinson hit a 3-pointer to cut the lead to 72-70 with 7 seconds to go. Greene pushed the lead to 74-70 with two free throws before the Catamounts' Richie Gordon closed out the scoring with a layup with two seconds remaining.

Gordon had 16 points, and Brandon Giles and Mike Williams each added 11 for the Catamounts (19-8). Brigham Waginger scored nine points and dished out seven assists, while Jake Robinson and Mike Williams each added nine in the loss.

Western Carolina erased a 10-point first half deficit, chipping away at the Golden Flashes' opening half lead to trail by just one, 34-33, at the break.

WCU returns to Cullowhee for consecutive home games beginning Thursday night at 7:00 pm against Samford before wrapping up the regular season on Saturday afternoon at 3:00 pm against Chattanooga. The Catamounts will honor their five seniors in a special pre-game ceremony Saturday afternoon in a game that will be televised on SportSouth.

Post-Game Notes:
- Western Carolina and Kent State are even in the all-time series - WCU won in OT at Kent State a year ago with the Golden Flashes evening the series with Saturday night's win;

- Senior Brigham Waginger made five steals in the loss at Kent State giving him 75 on the season, just SIX shy of matching his own WCU single-season record (81, 2008-09);

- Although WCU played out of conference on Saturday, the Catamounts received good news within league play ... By virtue of Samford's win over Chattanooga -- sweeping the regular season meetings against the Mocs -- Western Carolina was locked into one of the top two positions in the SoCon's North Division, and is guaranteed a first round bye in the upcoming conference tournament;

- The Catamounts still have an outside chance of earning the SoCon's North Division ... To win the division out right, WCU would need to win out (at home against Samford and Chattanooga) and for Appalachian State to lose all of its three remaining contests (at Elon and at home against both Chattanooga and Samford) ... Two Appalachian State losses coupled with two Western Carolina wins would mean the two would share the North Division crown with ASU garnering the top seed after sweeping the regular season ... If ASU wins two or more games OR if WCU drops one, the Mountaineers would win the North outright;