FARMVILLE, Va. – Western Carolina used a season-high 13 3-pointers to hold off a second-half charge by American in an 80-79 win over the Eagles Saturday night in the Jerome Kersey Classic at Willett Hall on the campus of Longwood University.
 
With the win, WCU improves to 2-3 while American drops to 2-3.
 
Graduate student Nicholas Robinson led WCU with 20 points, his second 20-point plus game of the season and fourth contest this year in double figures. He also led WCU with eight rebounds. Fellow graduate student Cam Bacote added 16 points, 13 of which came in the second half. Redshirt junior Joe Petrakis got WCU off to a strong start in contributing a career-best 15 points while junior Vonterius Woolbright also recorded a career-high with 11 points and dished out seven assists.
 
Jaxon Knotek led American with a game-high 21 points, finishing 8-for-12 from the field and 4-for-6 behind the 3-point line. Stacy Beckton, Jr. and Matt Rogers each tallied 12 points followed by Colin Smalls with 11. Rogers narrowly missed a double-double with a game-high nine rebounds.
 
American opened by scoring the game's first five points before a Petrakis 3-pointer sparked a 12-0 Catamount run capped by a McCray layup at the 14:41 mark. Petrakis was responsible for seven of WCU's 12 points during the run. Following a Ball 3-pointer that brought the Eagles within four, 12-8, the Catamounts tallied 10 of the game's next 15 points as a Petrakis 3-pointer put WCU ahead 22-13 just shy of the midpoint of the first half. WCU maintained a lead between six and nine points for nearly the next five minutes before a Knotek 3-pointer followed by a Smalls jumper brought the Eagles within one, 26-25, with 4:34 remaining. The Catamounts answered with an 11-2 run as a Gilmore layup put WCU ahead 37-27 with just over a minute to play, carrying a 42-31 lead into halftime.
 
The Eagles opened the second half on a 14-1 run, taking a 45-43 advantage with a Knotek 3-pointer with 14:31 remaining in regulation. Woolbright responded with five straight points as the Catamounts reclaimed a 48-45 lead at the 13:34 mark. American evened the score at 48 with 12:45 to play with a Lorenzo Donadio free throw as the teams traded the lead nine times with five ties over the next nine minutes.
 
Bacote gave the Catamounts a six-point lead, 70-64, with a 3-pointer at the 3:30 mark. After the Eagles completed a three-point player on their next possession, Bacote drained another 3-pointer to push the WCU lead back to six. Tyler Harris hit a 3-pointer for a 78-71 WCU lead with 62 seconds remaining, but the Eagles wouldn't go down without a fight. A Beckton, Jr. 3-pointer with 45 seconds left slashed the Catamount lead to four before Johnny O'Neil hit a 3-pointer to bring American within one, 78-77, with 17 seconds left. Robinson was fouled with 12 seconds showing and made two crucial free throws for an 80-77 advantage with Beckton, Jr. answering with a pair of charity tosses to make it a one-point game, 80-79, with nine seconds left.
 
After a missed WCU free throw, the Eagles grabbed the defensive rebound and raced up the court, but a Smalls jumper wouldn't fall as time expired as the Catamounts secured the win.
 
WCU finished 30-for-57 (52.6 percent) from the field, 13-for-28 (46.4 percent) behind the 3-point line, and 7-for-18 (38.9 percent) at the free throw line. The Catamounts also held a 40-33 edge in rebounds. American went 30-for-65 (46.2 percent) from the field, 10-for-22 (45.4 percent) behind the 3-point arc, and 9-for-13 (69.2 percent) at the charity stripe.
 
The Catamounts close out the Jerome Kersey Classic on Sunday against tournament host Longwood at 4 p.m. Audio coverage is available on the Catamount Sports Network beginning at 3:30 p.m. with the game streamed on ESPN+ (paid subscription required). 

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