Final Stats

Cullowhee, N.C. - The Western Carolina University men's basketball team trailed for a total of three minutes Tuesday night as the Catamounts picked up an 86-70 victory over St. Catharine College in their final game of 2014. Four Catamounts reached double-figures in the game with senior James Sinclair leading the way with 24 points.

Sinclair was 7-16 from the field while going a perfect 8-8 from the charity stripe. He also had four rebounds, three assists and three steals in the game. Junior Torrion Brummitt tied a career-high with 17 points as he nailed nine of his 10 attempts at the free throw line while knocking down four field goals. He also had five rebounds and a block in the game.

The final two double-digit scorers for the Catamounts were a pair of freshmen. Devin Peterson made the first start of his career and ended with a career-high 12 points and a team-high four assists. He also had two steals and a block in the contest. Tucker Thompson, who started five games earlier this season, came off the bench to score a career-best 12 points. He also added six rebounds, two steals and an assist to his total. He was a perfect 4-4 from the field while going 4-7 at the free throw line.

Juniors Justin Browning and Mike Brown tied for the team-high in rebounds with eight each. Brown was one point away from double-figures with nine points to go along with a block and a steal. Browning had five points as well.

Freshman Haboubacar Mutombo made his WCU debut and played five minutes with a pair of rebounds while junior Dexter Jenkins scored his first career points while finishing the game with three points and a rebound.

The Catamounts dominated the paint, out-scoring the Patriots 40-4 in the lane. WCU shot 42.9 percent from the field, 20.0 percent from 3-point range and 80.6 percent from the free throw line. The Patriots shot 33.3 percent from the field, 42.9 percent from three and 65.2 percent from the charity stripe.

After WCU opened the game with a 4-0 run, the Patriots used a layup and a 3-pointer to take their first lead of the game at 5-4. The Catamounts answered with a jumper but another SCC three gave the Patriots their largest lead of the contest at 8-6. An 11-2 run opened the game up for the Catamounts but it would not last long as the Patriots came back to take the lead at the 6:33 mark of the first half with another 3-pointer. This time the Catamounts answered with a 12-0 run to open the game back up. WCU would take a 40-30 lead into the break led by Sinclair's 13 points.

The second half opened with a 14-5 run by the Patriots which cut the Catamounts lead to just one but that would be as close as SCC would get. WCU once again answered with a 15-2. From that point on the closest the Patriot would get would be nine points on four different occasions but every time the Catamounts had an answer. The Catamounts closed out the game 86-70. Sinclair had 11 points in the second half followed by Brummitt's nine.

Lorenzo Dewberry led the Patriots with 29 points including seven 3-pointers.

The Catamounts will be back in action this Saturday, Jan. 3 at 2 pm as they host The Citadel in a Southern Conference match-up.