Men's Basketball 1/7/2025 2:00:00 PM Greg Hartlage, Director of Media Relations

Men’s Basketball Travels to Spartanburg in Midweek Action

Cullowhee, N.C. – Western Carolina men's basketball hits the road for the first time in 2025 with a trip to Spartanburg to battle Wofford on Wednesday night. The matchup with the Terriers is set for a 7 p.m. tip on campus at the Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium.

The matchup between the Catamounts and Terriers will be shown on ESPN+ (paid subscription required). Free live streaming audio from the Catamount Sports Network and live stats are 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).

Matchup: Western Carolina (4-9, 0-2 SoCon) at Wofford (7-8, 1-1 SoCon)
Date: Wednesday, Jan. 7
Time: 7 p.m.
Site: Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium (Spartanburg, S.C.)
Live Stats: Sidearm Stats
Live Video: ESPN+ (paid subscription required)
Live Audio: Catamount Sports Network
Radio: 105.7 FM / 540 AM WRGC "The River" (wrgc.com)
Twitter: @CatamountMBB

About Western Carolina:
Senior Bernard Pelote posted his fourth-straight double-digit scoring effort with a team-best 22 points, but Samford used a 17-to-4 run out of the halftime locker room to extend its 10-point lead at intermission and pulled away to down Western Carolina 88-69 in Southern Conference men's basketball action last Saturday on Ingles Court at the Ramsey Center.

Pelote posted his second 20-plus point performance of the season, both coming within his last three outings, making 9-of-13 field goals with four 3-pointers, as he opened the day 4-for-4 from deep. Redshirt sophomore Cord Stansberry hit his seasonal average with 11 points and a pair of steals and freshman CJ Hyland rounded out the trio of double-figure scorers with 10 points. Hyland added three assists and a pair of steals. Junior Brandon Morgan had six rebounds and three helpers, while classmate Vernon Collins had five offensive boards for WCU.

Pelote paces the Catamounts in league play, averaging 19.5 points per game to sit fourth among the league's top scorers, while also ranking in a three-way tie for fourth with 7.5 rebounds per contest in the first two league games. He's in a three-way tie for sixth, averaging three 3-pointers in the opening two games. Collins is tied for second in league play, averaging 3.5 offensive rebounds per game.

The Catamount bench has filled the scoreboard throughout the start of the 2024-25 season, averaging 25.62 points per game, fourth-best in the SoCon.

Redshirt sophomore Marcus Kell has tallied a team-high 53 points over nine games in reserve with a game-high 11 coming against mountain rival UNC Asheville. Junior Ice Emery and Morgan both have 44 points off the bench, followed by 37 from freshman Fischer Brown. The Catamounts have seen a bench player with double-figures nine times, led by Emery's 24 against Truett McConnell.

Western Carolina leads the SoCon with 39.5 rebounds per game over the first 13 games, led by Pelote at 7.5 per game – the second-best average in the SoCon. He's second in the league with 6.1 defensive rebounds per contest and second in the conference with a total of 77 defensive boards. Kell ranks sixth in the conference, averaging 2.1 offensive rebounds per game as he leads the squad with 27 offensive boards, followed closely by Collins at 25 and Pelote at 21.

Stansberry ranks second in the SoCon by shooting 93.9 percent (31-of-33) at the free throw line. Collins leads the Catamounts with 13 blocked shots, sitting in a tie for fifth as he's averaging a block a game and is tied for fifth in rejections in the league. Redshirt junior Chase McKey is sixth in the league with 60% (18-of-30) from the field, while Collins is eighth in the conference at 58.2 percent (32-of-55).

WCU has been well-tested to begin the 2024-25 season, the first under veteran head coach Tim Craft. Per the NET strength of schedule (SOS) rankings, the Catamounts maintain the top spot in the SoCon with the 37th toughest schedule.

Scouting the Opposition:
Wofford comes into Wednesday's action with a 7-8 record after using a 65.2 percent (15-of-23) second-half shooting performance to overtake ETSU for a three-point win last on Saturday afternoon. The victory over the Bucs comes on the heels of a tight two-point setback in the league opener against UNCG last Wednesday.

Like the Catamounts, Wofford has played a challenging nonconference schedule that included a trip to the No. 6 Duke, while also squaring off with six other quadrants 1 or 2 teams. With wins over St. Thomas and Saint Louis the Terriers hold the second-toughest SOS in the league at 112 and have the toughest average opponent NET ranking in the league at 45.

Senior guard Corey Tripp leads the Terriers with 13.5 points per game as he's posted at least 11 points in all but two games this season with a season-high 24 against Saint Louis. Senior center Kyler Filewich – transfer from Southern Illinois a season ago – is the lone player in the conference that's averaging a double-double with 11.1 points per game and 10 rebounds a contest with six double-doubles thus far for Wofford.

Filewich has also had five games in which he's tallied eight or nine rebounds, just missing double-doubles in each of those occurrences. He's making 55.2 percent (74-of-134) from the field. Senior guard Dillon Bailey rounds out the double-figure scoring for the Terriers at 10.4 points per game, posting a season-high 20 against Portland State. USC Upstate transfer guard Justin Bailey leads the way from deep, shooting 44.2 percent (19-of-43) threes to rank fifth in the SoCon.

In SoCon play, Filewich is one of two players to average 11.0 rebounds per game in the opening two games of league play. Senior guard Jackson Silvis sits in a tie for sixth with six made threes in league play, and Tripp is tied for third with 10 assists.

Wofford sits atop the SoCon averaging 13.9 offensive rebounds per game, led by 59 on the season from Filewich. Tripp has 52 assists and Filewich 50 as the Terriers are third in the league, averaging 16.9 helpers per contest.

Wofford was tabbed fourth in the 10-team preseason poll as the Terriers are under the direction of third-year head coach Dwight Perry. The Terriers were one of four teams to put two players on the preseason All-League team as both Filewich and Tripp garnered honors on the 10-player squad.

Wofford finished the 2023-24 season with a 17-15 record, including a 10-8 league record, before falling in the tournament's opening round to Chattanooga.

Series History:
Wofford holds a slim 35-33 lead in the all-time series as the two teams split last year's matchups, with both defending their respective home floors. WCU defeated the Terriers 70-66 as Wofford returned the favor with an 88-86 overtime win in Spartanburg. Before last February's win in Spartanburg, the Catamounts had won each of the past three meetings dating back to February of 2022 as Wofford took four in the head-to-head series.

Wofford has the upper hand in the series from Spartanburg with a 17-8 mark, including winning three of the past four home matchups. Senior Bernard Pelote tallied five points and seven rebounds in the home triumph last season against the Terriers.

Up Next for Western Carolina:
The Catamounts return home on Saturday, Jan. 11, for a Catamount basketball doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m. with the women's team battling ETSU in a "Blackout Ramsey" rivalry game before the men's squad returns to the hardwood to battle Mercer with tip set for 3:30 p.m. Both games will be shown on ESPN+ (paid subscription required), with live audio coverage through the Catamount Sports Network available online at CatamountSports.com and the men's game being broadcast on 105.7 FM / 540 AM WRGC "The River" in Sylva. Live stats are also available on Saturday via CatamountSports.com.

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).

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