Chattanooga, Tenn. – Tied at 53 with 1:27 to play, Chattanooga's Jada Guinn spurred an 8-3 run to help propel the homestanding Mocs to a 60-56 victory over Western Carolina on Thursday night in Southern Conference women's basketball action at the McKenzie Arena.
"Even though we did not get the outcome we wanted this team continues to compete with heart. They have came a long way and we still are working to play for March," commented head coach Kiley Hill.
Lonasia Brewer led the Catamounts with her second double-double of the season, scoring a team-high 19 points and matching her career-high with 12 rebounds including a career-best 10 on the defensive glass. Brewer did most of her work in the second 20 minutes with 13 points and eight rebounds after intermission. Chelsea Wooten added 14 points, connecting on three 3-pointers as 11 of her 14 points came after halftime.
Wooten's trio of triples moved her into ninth-place on WCU's single-season record book with 56 3-pointers, by-passing former Catamount Lauren Powell who made 55 in the 2006-07 season.
Jada Burton added eight points, four rebounds, and four assists as the junior matched her career-high with 38 minutes played. Burton became the first Catamount to eclipse 100 assists in a season since 2019-20 when the sisters Judith Martin Ruiz (113) and Andrea Martin Ruiz (109) hit the mark in the same season.
Guinn led the Mocs with a game-high 29 points while also pulling down a team-high nine rebounds. She connected on nine field goals while making 11-of-12 at the free throw line. Raven Thompson added 16 points and six rebounds for UTC as she was also effective at the line by going 7-of-8.
Chattanooga (23-3, 11-0 SoCon) started fast with a quick 6-2 burst out of the gates to gain the early edge before the Catamounts scored the next six points of the quarter to jump back in front. After the hosts quickly tied it, WCU kept the Mocs at arm's length, pushing in front by one at 12-11 after the opening quarter.
The Mocs scored the opening five points of the second to gain the lead back before five unanswered from the guests made it 17-16 just three minutes into the second quarter. Both teams were held off the scoresheet over the next three minutes before Chattanooga used an 8-2 burst down the stretch to carry a 24-19 lead to the half.
Western Carolina (6-21, 1-11 SoCon) used a hot start from Wooten after halftime with a 7-2 burst to quickly even the score at 26. UTC had a quick answer with six of the next eight points before the Mocs promptly stretched the lead to five, 36-31, halfway through the third quarter. The Catamounts finished the third strong riding an 11-4 spurt that allowed WCU to take the 42-40 lead to the final 10 minutes. The Catamounts posted a 9-of-13 (69.2%) shooting performance in the third quarter to pull in front of league-leading Chattanooga.
Following a Tyra Robinson layup to begin the fourth quarter, Chattanooga scored the game's next six points to regain the slight edge. The lead was short-lived, though, as a three-point play from Zanoria Cruz pushed the Catamounts back in front before the Mocs sank a free throw to tie it at 47 on the ensuing possession.
Wooten nailed with a 3-pointer that was quickly answered by Chattanooga with Brewer responding on the WCU end with a layup to make it 52-50 with four minutes to play. The Mocs tied it up at 52 at the free throw line before Brewer gave WCU the one-point edge at 53-52 with 2:28 to play. The hosts used the free-throw line to their advantage, using an 8-3 run over the final 90 seconds to pull in front and claim the tight 60-56 decision.
Western Carolina posted a 43.8% (21-of-48) shooting performance from the field compared to 38% (19-of-50) for Chattanooga. The Mocs picked up one more three than WCU at 4-to-3. Chattanooga created separation at the charity stripe connecting on 18-of-20 (90%), while the Catamounts made 11-of-18 (61.1%) at the line. The guests pulled down an edge on the glass at 32-27.
Thursday's game featured 13 lead changes and 12 ties as neither team held more than a five-point lead. Western Carolina had a 34-26 edge in points in the paint, while the Mocs had the 13-10 lead in bench scoring.
The Catamounts continue their regular season-ending three-game road swing with a trip to Johnson City, Tenn., to battle ETSU with a tip-off from Brooks Gymnasium set for 2 p.m. The matchup with the Bucs will be shown on ESPN+ (paid subscription required) with live stats on CatamountSports.com.
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