Chattanooga, Tenn. – Tre Jackson hit six 3-pointers in scoring a game-high 20 points and Vonterius Woolbright collected his second triple-double of the week as four Catamounts scored in double figures to lead Western Carolina to an 82-63 road win over Chattanooga in Southern Conference men's basketball action at the McKenzie Arena.
 
WCU's third-straight seasonal win coupled with Mercer's 82-75 road victory over Furman at Timmons Arena on Saturday afternoon lands the Catamounts in fourth place in the final regular-season standings. Asheville will be painted purple in next Saturday's (March 9) quarterfinal nightcap as the fourth-seeded Catamounts will face chromatic rival and fifth-seeded Furman at the Harrah's Cherokee Center – Asheville in the 8:30 p.m. game.
 
Jackson scored 14 of his 20 points in the first half as he connected on four of his six 3-pointers before the break. Woolbright finished with 15 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 assists to earn the triple-dip for an NCAA-best fifth time this season – and twice in as many games this week. The Albany, Ga., product has recorded 26 double-doubles in 31 games this season to lead the country.
 
Russell Jones Jr. chipped in 15 points with a trio of made treys while redshirt freshman post Corneilous Williams added a career-high 11 points off the bench, just missing a double-double with eight rebounds. Additionally, Kamar Robertson and Bernard Pelote both finished with seven apiece for WCU with Robertson making his second-consecutive start.
 
Honor Huff led three Mocs in double figures with 16 points including four 3-pointers, with Tyler Millin and Jan Zidek both contributing 13 points. Sam Alexis finished with nine points and a team-high seven rebounds in the loss.
 
Western Carolina (22-9, 11-7 SoCon) rode a strong start with red-hot shooting on offense and a tenacious defensive effort to lead by as many as 21 in the opening 20 minutes on Saturday.
 
After the two squads traded early 3-pointers – the second by UTC's Demetrius Davis that knotted the game at three apiece – the Catamounts used a 9-0 spurt to take a 12-3 lead it would never relinquish. WCU took its first double-digit lead at 15-5 before a 10-to-2 spurt by the Mocs closed the home squad to within two, 17-15, midway through the first half.
 
The Catamounts then used a strong 23-to-4 run over the next seven minutes to take the two-point game and pull ahead by a half-high 21 points, 40-19, at the 3:39 mark of the opening half. UTC managed a 10-3 burst to close the first half, though, as WCU carried a 14-point, 43-29, lead into the locker room.
 
WCU outshot the Mocs 45% to 35% and had a 10-rebound edge, 24-to-14, at intermission.
 
Chattanooga (20-11, 12-6 SoCon) managed to trim the Catamount lead back to single digits at nine points three separate times over the first six minutes into the second half. With the Mocs back within six, 53-47, at the 12-minute mark, Williams collected an offensive rebound and stick back that gave the Catamounts back an eight-point advantage. The six-point deficit would prove to be as close as UTC would close the remainder of the game.
 
Chattanooga pulled to within seven points at 62-55 with 7:34 to play, but the Catamounts used a decisive 16-to-3 run over the next five and a half minutes to reclaim a 20-point lead at 78-58. WCU managed a game-high 22-point lead inside the final 60 seconds in scoring the 82-63 victory, just its seventh win all-time at the McKenzie Arena.
 
For the game, Western Carolina commanded the glass by outrebounding Chattanooga 42-to-29 in leading from wire-to-wire for the fifth time this season – and the third time in league play.
 
The 2024 Ingles Southern Conference Basketball Championships women's and men's tournaments are scheduled for March 7-11 at the Harrah's Cherokee Center in Asheville. WCU's women play on Thursday morning with the men's squad locked into Saturday night's late game with tip-off at approximately 8:30 p.m. Single-session tickets and tournament books for every game are available for purchase through the Catamount Athletics ticket office located on the first floor of the Ramsey Center, by phone at (828) 227-2401, and online at CatamountSports.com/BuyTickets.
 
Again this year, the Catamount Club's Catamount Central for the duration of the tournament is Mellow Mushroom (50 Broadway St., Asheville, NC 28801). Pregame socials ahead of every game the Catamounts play in Asheville will be held at the downtown pizzeria location.
 
Be sure to catch the Catamount Sports Network tournament preview Facebook LIVE show on Tuesday, March 5, as both Catamount head coaches Justin Gray and Kiley Hill will look ahead to next weekend's championship event. The show will air on WCU's official Athletics Facebook page, FB.com/catamountsports.
 
Keep track of everything related to Catamount men's basketball and WCU Athletics through our social media outlets on Facebook (fb.com/catamountsports), Instagram (@catamountmbb @wcu_catamounts), and Twitter (@CatamountMBB, @catamounts).
 
. chipped in 15 points with a trio of made treys while redshirt freshman post Corneilous Williams added a career-high 11 points off the bench, just missing a double-double with eight rebounds. Additionally, Kamar Robertson and Bernard Pelote both finished with seven apiece for WCU with Robertson making his second-consecutive start.
 
Honor Huff led three Mocs in double figures with 16 points including four 3-pointers, with Tyler Millin and Jan Zidek both contributing 13 points. Sam Alexis finished with nine points and a team-high seven rebounds in the loss.
 
Western Carolina (22-9, 11-7 SoCon) rode a strong start with red-hot shooting on offense and a tenacious defensive effort to lead by as many as 21 in the opening 20 minutes on Saturday.
 
After the two squads traded early 3-pointers – the second by UTC's Demetrius Davis that knotted the game at three apiece – the Catamounts used a 9-0 spurt to take a 12-3 lead it would never relinquish. WCU took its first double-digit lead at 15-5 before a 10-to-2 spurt by the Mocs closed the home squad to within two, 17-15, midway through the first half.
 
The Catamounts then used a strong 23-to-4 run over the next seven minutes to take the two-point game and pull ahead by a half-high 21 points, 40-19, at the 3:39 mark of the opening half. UTC managed a 10-3 burst to close the first half, though, as WCU carried a 14-point, 43-29, lead into the locker room.
 
WCU outshot the Mocs 45% to 35% and had a 10-rebound edge, 24-to-14, at intermission.
 
Chattanooga (20-11, 12-6 SoCon) managed to trim the Catamount lead back to single digits at nine points three separate times over the first six minutes into the second half. With the Mocs back within six, 53-47, at the 12-minute mark, Williams collected an offensive rebound and stick back that gave the Catamounts back an eight-point advantage. The six-point deficit would prove to be as close as UTC would close the remainder of the game.
 
Chattanooga pulled to within seven points at 62-55 with 7:34 to play, but the Catamounts used a decisive 16-to-3 run over the next five and a half minutes to reclaim a 20-point lead at 78-58. WCU managed a game-high 22-point lead inside the final 60 seconds in scoring the 82-63 victory, just its seventh win all-time at the McKenzie Arena.
 
For the game, Western Carolina commanded the glass by outrebounding Chattanooga 42-to-29 in leading from wire-to-wire for the fifth-time this season – and the third time in league play.
 
The 2024 Ingles Southern Conference Basketball Championships women's and men's tournaments are scheduled for March 7-11 at the Harrah's Cherokee Center in Asheville. WCU's women play on Thursday morning with the men's squad locked into Saturday night's late game with tip-off at approximately 8:30 p.m. Single-session tickets and tournament books for every game are available for purchase through the Catamount Athletics ticket office located on the first floor of the Ramsey Center, by phone at (828) 227-2401, and online at CatamountSports.com/BuyTickets.
 
Again this year, the Catamount Club's Catamount Central for the duration of the tournament is Mellow Mushroom (50 Broadway St., Asheville, NC 28801). Pregame socials ahead of every game the Catamounts play in Asheville will be held at the downtown pizzeria location.
 
Be sure to catch the Catamount Sports Network tournament preview Facebook LIVE show on Tuesday, March 5, as both Catamount head coaches Justin Gray and Kiley Hill will look ahead to next weekend's championship event. The show will air on WCU's official Athletics Facebook page, FB.com/catamountsports.
 
Keep track of everything related to Catamount men's basketball and WCU Athletics through our social media outlets on Facebook (fb.com/catamountsports), Instagram (@catamountmbb @wcu_catamounts), and Twitter (@CatamountMBB, @catamounts).