ASHEVILLE, N.C. – A late comeback by Western Carolina fell just short on Friday afternoon as the Catamounts dropped a 66-64 decision to Troy in the opening game of the Mako Medical Asheville Classic.

Travion McCray led the Catamounts with 14 points and was one point shy of tying his career high. Mason Faulkner was one rebound shy of a double-double with 13 points and a team-best nine rebounds. He also dished out a game-best five assists. Matt Halvorsen and Xavier Cork finished in double figures with 11 and 10 points, respectively.

Kam Woods led Troy with a game-high 20 points ahead of Zay Williams with 15. Williams led the Trojans with nine rebounds.

Troy is 1-0 while Western Carolina drops to 1-1.

WCU opened the second half on a 15-4 run as a McCray free throw put the Catamounts ahead 41-30 with 13:44 to play. The 11-point lead was the largest by either team in the game. After a Cork layup put the Catamounts ahead 43-33 at the 11:49 mark, Troy went on its game-altering 16-5 run over the next four minutes to claim a 49-48 edge after Stampley's 3-pointer. Neither team led by more than three points until Williams' layup with two minutes to play put the Trojans ahead 61-56. The Catamounts got within three points on two occasions down the stretch before Williams put the game out of reach with a pair of free throws in the final 13 seconds. McCray drained a half-court shot as time expired for the final points of the contest.

The Trojans opened the game on an 11-2 run capped by a Waters 3-pointer at the 15:43 mark. WCU answered with eight straight points to pull within one, 11-10, after a pair of McMahon free throws with just under 14 minutes remaining. After a Williams dunk put the Trojans ahead 15-12, the Catamounts tied the game on a Halvorsen triple and pulled ahead 18-15 with a McCray 3-pointer at the 6:50 mark. WCU enjoyed a three-point lead on five occasions down the stretch, the latest following an Ahmir Langlais dunk with 52 seconds remaining. A Woods 3-pointer 10 seconds later sent the teams into halftime tied at 26. In the first half, the Catamounts went 8-for-28 (28.6 percent) from the field with the Trojans making 10 of 32 (31.3 percent) shots from the field.

Troy held a slim 39-38 edge on the glass. The Trojans finished 23-for-61 (37.7 percent) from the field in the game while the Catamounts were 21-for-59 (35.6 percent) from the field.

The Catamounts wrap up the Mako Medical Asheville Classic on Saturday against tournament host UNC Asheville. Tip-off is scheduled for 4 p.m. and will be broadcast on WYCW-62 in the Asheville/Greenville/Spartanburg television market as well as on ESPN+ (paid subscription required).  

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