SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Western Carolina senior Bernard Pelote and redshirt sophomore Marcus Kell both matched their individual career highs on Wednesday night to lead the Catamounts, but homestanding Wofford overcame WCU's feverish start to the second half by closing the game on a 13-to-3 run over the final three minutes of regulation to edge the Catamounts 77-69 in Southern Conference action at the Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium.
 
Pelote connected on 11 field goals including three from beyond the arc on his way to a game-high 27 points – the third 27-point performance of his collegiate career – while also pulling down a team-high eight rebounds with a pair of blocked shots. Kell tied his career-best with 16 points, matching his output against Bob Jones earlier this season. The Rock Hill, S.C., product hit three 3-pointers and went 5-of-6 at the free throw line adding a pair of blocks on the defensive end.
 
But the big story of the game was Western Carolina's inspired second-half push that erased an 11-point halftime deficit and provided the lead in the final frame. With the Catamounts trailing 48-37 at the break, Wofford's Kyler Filewich converted an offensive rebound into a slam dunk for a 13-point edge just over a minute into the half. The Catamounts then embarked on a 16-to-0 run to erase the deficit and take a three-point advantage, 53-50, at the 13:33 mark. During WCU's run, Wofford missed 10 shots from the field and committed a pair of turnovers.
 
WCU was only able to escape out to a six-point edge as Wofford managed to stem the tide from the opening haymaker by the Catamounts and kept it at a one-possession game through the middle stages of regulation. Brandon Morgan sank a 3-pointer at the 4:46 mark to push WCU ahead by two, 66-64 – but it would prove the be the final time the visitors would lead on the scoreboard. The Catamounts only managed three points over the final three and a half minutes while the Terriers paraded to the charity stripe to cap the 10-point run to the finish in the 77-69 victory.
 
Behind Pelote and Kell, redshirt sophomore guard Cord Stansberry just missed double figures with nine points, adding a pair of steals. Morgan tallied a team-high five assists, scored five points including the trey late in the second half, and pulled down four rebounds.
 
Filewich posted a double-double with 16 points and a game-high 18 rebounds while also dishing out six assists in a busy stat line. Dillon Bailey and Corey Tripp led Wofford offensively with 17 points apiece as the two combined for all 13 points after the final media timeout – nine by Tripp and four from the free throw line by Bailey. Tripp made three triples and was a perfect 4-of-4 from the stripe, while Bailey hit a pair of 3-pointers and was 7-of-9 on free throws. Justin Bailey rounded out the double-figure scoring for the Terriers with 14 points on 4-of-5 threes, six rebounds, and five assists.
 
Wofford (8-8, 2-1 SoCon) opened the scoring with a 10-4 run to gain the early upper hand in Wednesday's action before Pelote and Kell spearheaded an 8-3 spurt over the following 1:40 to cut the deficit to one, 13-12 with 14:32 to play in the half. After a Pelote 3-pointer tied the game at 15, the Terriers used an 8-0 burst to claim the 23-15 advantage midway through the half.
 
WCU continued to push back with a 7-2 run of its own to whittle the margin back to three, 25-22, before the hosts responded with a 15-to-5 run over the ensuing 3:35 to stretch the lead to 13, 40-27 with 3:57 to play in the frame. Western Carolina scored five of the next seven points to cut the deficit to 10, 42-32. The two teams would go back and forth down the stretch, leading to the 48-37 halftime advantage for Wofford.
 
WCU's second-half hot streak included 16 straight points over five minutes and resulted in the 53-50 lead with 13:33 to play. Pelote had nine of the 16 points in the run for WCU. A 5-2 run from WCU stretched the lead to six, 58-52, before the Terriers responded with a 12-5 burst of their own over the next 6:41 to jump in front by one, 64-63. Morgan then connected on the 3-pointer that gave WCU the one-possession lead before the Terriers mounted the 13-3 finish over the final 3:32 to pull away down the stretch for the win.
 
The Catamounts finished shooting 35.9% (23-of-64) from the field while connecting on 10 3-pointers, making it at a 25.6% clip. WCU made 13-of-15 (86.7%) from the charity stripe. Wofford converted 44.4% (28-of-63) from the floor while matching the guests with 10 threes, including eight in the opening half. Wofford converted 11-of-18 (61.1%) while making 11-of-14 from the foul line.
 
Wofford controlled the glass by 16, 47-31, with the Terriers having a 13-7 edge on the offensive glass.
 
WCU turned it over a season-low four times with the Terriers converting those into 10 points. Wofford, on the other hand, had nine miscues that led to a dozen Catamount points. Wofford held a 34-24 advantage in points in the paint, while the Catamounts had a 14-9 lead in second-chance points and a 22-9 bench-scoring advantage led by 16 from Kell.
 
Western Carolina (4-10, 0-3 SoCon) returns home on Saturday, Jan. 11, for a Catamount basketball doubleheader. The women's team will battle ETSU in a "Blackout Ramsey" rivalry game at 1 p.m., and while the men's squad battles Mercer at 3:30 p.m. in the backend of the twin bill.
 
Both games will be shown on ESPN+ (paid subscription required), with live audio coverage through the Catamount Sports Network available online at CatamountSports.com. The men's game will be broadcast on 105.7 FM / 540 AM WRGC "The River" in Sylva. Live stats are also available on Saturday via CatamountSports.com. 
 
Check back with CatamountSports.com or the Catamount Athletics social media channels for any weather-related updates of this weekend's schedule as Winter Storm Cora tracks towards the Carolinas in the coming days.
 
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).