Charleston, S.C. – Senior Tre Jackson sank six 3-pointers on his way to a game-high 24 points to keep pace with classmate Vonterius Woolbright who secured his NCAA-leading 11th double-double in the first half on Wednesday, finishing the game with 22 points and 15 rebounds as Western Carolina scored its sixth-straight seasonal win by opening Southern Conference play with an 80-71 road victory over The Citadel at the McAlister Field House.
 
Woolbright produced his sixth-straight double-double effort over the game's opening 20 minutes, hitting the halftime locker room with 11 points and 10 rebounds at the midway point. The Albany, Ga., product and conference's leading scorer hit the 20-point mark for the ninth time this season and finished just three assists shy of the triple-double, dishing out seven helpers. Jackson's 24 points were a season-high and gave the Columbia, S.C., native back-to-back games with 20+ points. He added five rebounds and five assists.
 
Russell Jones Jr. gave the Catamounts a third in double figures, connecting on a trio of 3-pointers to finish with 11 points, while Bernard Pelote chipped in nine and DJ Campbell added eight points as WCU saw eight players hit the scoresheet.
 
Returning to the South Carolina Lowcountry after playing collegiately across town at the College of Charleston, graduate transfer Charles Lampten swatted a WCU single-game record-tying seven shots in the winning effort, adding six rebounds and two points. Lampten's seven blocked shots were a career high, and the most for a WCU player since 2005. He is the fourth different Catamount to record seven blocks in a game, joining Rans Brempong who accomplished the feat twice (at UNCG, 1/15/05; vs. Chattanooga (2/17/05), Jeff VanDeMark (vs. Appalachian State, 1/27/93), and Tommy Lavelle (Atlantic Christian, 1/11/64).
 
Without its seasonal leading scorer AJ Smith, The Citadel (8-6, 0-1 SoCon) had four players score in double figures with Winston Hill finishing with a team-best 19 points before he left the game with an injury. Hill was followed by Madison Durr with 17 points, Elijah Moran with 15, and transfer post Quentin Millora-Brown finishing with a dozen – 10 of which came from the free throw line (10-of-12) – to accompany eight rebounds.
 
Western Carolina (12-2, 1-0 SoCon) matched the program's best start through 14 games with its 12th seasonal win to duplicate what the 2009-10 squad accomplished on its way to a 22-12 finish, WCU's first 20-win season as an NCAA Division I program. The Catamounts matched their season-opening six-game winning streak while also stretching their road win streak to three. The victory also halted both a three-game slide to the Bulldogs in the head-to-head series and a three-game drought in Charleston.
 
After scoring the game's first five points, WCU watched as the home squad posted the next nine as a part of a 12-to-2 run that put the Catamounts in a game-high five-point, 12-7, deficit. The Catamounts then responded by scoring the game's next seven points, taking a lead it would never relinquish on a Woolbright free throw at the 12:29 mark of the first half.
 
With the margin back to just one point at 20-19, the Catamounts then outscored The Citadel 20-to-9 over the final nine minutes to carry a 12-point, 40-28, lead into the halftime locker room.
 
Out of the break, WCU was able to stretch its lead out to 20 just three minutes into the second half as Colin Granger deposited a Woolbright dish to hand the Catamounts a 52-32 lead. However, as was the case multiple times over the game's final 20 minutes, the scrappy Bulldogs would not quit. The Citadel trimmed seven points off the deficit to pull to within 13 with 12 minutes remaining before WCU managed to extend the lead back to 20, 64-44, with nine and a half to play.
 
Aided by a couple of missed shots and a pair of WCU turnovers, the Bulldogs used a 13-to-2 run over the next three minutes to cut the margin to single digits at nine, 66-57. The Citadel was undeterred by a highlight-reel alley-oop slam by Pelote on a feed from Woolbright, WCU's lone points during the home squad's spurt.
 
The Cadets would manage to close to within nine on five different occasions over the final five minutes of regulation, but Western Carolina had the offensive answer to hold the 'Dogs at bay for the nine-point, conference-opening 80-71 victory.
 
WCU outrebounded The Citadel 39-to-33 and held a 13-to-12 edge on the offensive glass. The Bulldogs held a decisive edge at the free throw line, parading to the stripe 23 times with 18 makes while WCU was just 9-of-10 with the bulk coming in the waning moments as The Citadel tried to lengthen the game with fouls. The Catamounts connected on a season-best 13 3-pointers in the winning effort, its fifth double-figure effort of the season.
 
The Catamounts became just the second team this season to hit the 80-point mark against The Citadel which entered play leading the SoCon in scoring defense at 65.5 points per game. WCU joined the College of Charleston which scored an opponent season-high 86 in a home win over the 'Dogs back in mid-December.
 
Western Carolina returns home for its lone home date amidst a four-game stretch to open league play as the Catamounts host the Wofford Terriers (8-6, 1-0 SoCon) this Saturday, Jan. 6, at 4 p.m. on Ingles Court in the Ramsey Center. WCU halted a four-game series slide by sweeping both regular-season meetings with the Terriers a season ago. Wofford downed VMI in overtime at home on Wednesday night to win its league opener. Tickets for Saturday's game are available online by visiting www.CatamountSports.com/BuyTickets.
 
Saturday's game will be broadcast on ESPN+ (paid subscription required) with live audio from the Catamount Sports Network and live stats available online at CatamountSports.com. Fans can also listen to the game locally on 105.7 FM / 540 AM WRGC "The River" in Sylva (www.wrgc.com).
 
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