Greensboro, N.C. – Tied at 58 with three-minutes to play, Keyshaun Langley hit a pair of 3-pointers on consecutive possessions to give homestanding UNC Greensboro a six-point lead it would never relinquish as the Spartans fended off Western Carolina 71-65 on Wednesday night in Southern Conference men's basketball action at the Greensboro Coliseum.

The back-to-back triples led to a two-possession advantage that UNCG maintained down the stretch in scoring the victory.

Russell Jones Jr. scored 20 of his game-high tying 22 points after intermission as the Catamounts fought back from a 10-point deficit in the second half. The senior from Columbia, S.C., eclipsed the 20-point plateau for a second-straight game – and for the fifth time this season as he and backcourt classmate Vonterius Woolbright both finished with 22 points scored. Vonterius Woolbright posted his 18th 20-plus point game, adding eight rebounds to miss a double-double for just the fifth time this season.

Tre Jackson and DJ Campbell both chipped in nine points apiece as Campbell was 4-of-6 from the field, and Jackson made three field goals including his team-high 86th triple of the season. Charles Lampten added seven rebounds in the defeat, five coming in the second half. 

Keyshaun Langley and Mikeal Brown-Jones led UNCG with 19 points apiece to lead four Spartans in double figures. Langley was 7-of-11 from the field with four 3-pointers, while Brown-Jones led the Spartans at the free throw line with a 9-of-10 performance and added eight rebounds. Donovan Atwell added 15 points and Kobe Langley rounded out the double-figure scorers with 10 points to go along with a team-high four assists. 

Western Carolina (19-9, 8-7 SoCon) came out of the gates hot on Wednesday with a 7-3 run in the opening minutes before UNCG answered with a similar 7-2 burst to take a one-point lead. Following a pair of free throws by Bernard Pelote, the Spartans scored nine of the next 11 points to stretch their advantage to six points, 19-13, midway through the opening stanza.

Woolbright used the free throw line to his advantage, spurring a 5-0 spurt with four free throws to cut the deficit back to one with just under eight minutes remaining in the half. It remained a one-possession game until UNCG managed to take a half-high seven-point lead inside the final 30 seconds. But Woolbright sent the teams to the locker room separated by five, 31-26, nailing a turnaround jumper at the first-half buzzer.

UNCG (20-8, 11-4 SoCon) opened the second half with a 7-to-2 run in the first four minutes, stretching the lead to a game-high 10, 38-28 and again at 40-30. WCU began to chip away at the deficit with seven of the following nine points to run the margin to five quickly. 

Trailing by eight, 48-40, Western Carolina used an 11-to-3 run to knot the game at 51 at the six-minute mark. Jones Jr. scored seven of the 11 points including a four-point play and three made free throws after being fouled behind the arc. Jones Jr. culminated WCU's comeback from down double-digits by handing the Catamounts their first lead since 13:32 of the first half with a 3-pointer at the 4:18 mark, handing the visitors a 56-55 lead.

WCU's lead was short-lived, though, as Atwell answered with a triple of his own on the ensuing possession to propel the Spartans back in front and the Catamounts could never pull back ahead. Jones Jr. drove for a layup to knot the game for the final time at 58-58 before Keyshaun Langley took over with his consecutive 3-pointers to set up the final three minutes.

WCU managed to cut the deficit back to four on three occasions but would get no closer as the Spartans earned the 71-65 victory, a sixth-straight loss for the Catamounts against their instate rival.

WCU managed 40.7% from the field, connecting on six 3-pointers, while UNCG recorded a 48 percent field goal percentage with eight from beyond the arc. Both teams were effective at the charity stripe as WCU made 15-of-16 and UNCG went 19-of-22 at the line, and similarly, both teams finished with 29 rebounds.

The Catamounts close out a two-game road swing on Saturday, Feb. 24, at 1 p.m. with a trip to Lexington, Va., to battle VMI. WCU is looking for the season sweep of the Keydets after a 63-point first half output that included 12 3-pointers led Western Carolina to the 102-77 home victory back on Jan. 27.The matchup with the Keydets will be shown on ESPN+ (paid subscription required) with live streaming audio from the Catamount Sports Network and live stats available online at CatamountSports.com.

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