Cullowhee, N.C. – Western Carolina opened Sunday's nonconference meeting with Stetson with five-straight made 3-pointers and canned two more out of the halftime locker room as part of a season-best 12 made triples as the Catamounts claimed their frontend of the two-game ASUN-Southern Conference Challenge, downing the Hatters 76-65 on Ingles Court at the Ramsey Center.
The win gave the Catamounts consecutive home victories in the first two of the three-game homestand. WCU looks for a third-straight inside the friendly confines of the Ramsey Center on Wednesday in the backend of a Catamount hoops doubleheader with the women's team in a true twinbill with UNC Asheville. Game times are 5 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Graduate transfer Julien Soumaoro led three Catamounts in double figures with a season-high 23 points, while redshirt junior Marcus Kell hit double figures for the fourth time on the young season with 17 points with four made 3-pointers and five rebounds. Soumaoro connected on eight field goals, including four from long range. The Bronx, N.Y. native added a team-best eight rebounds and six assists.
Freshman Tahlan Pettway eclipsed double figures for the first time in his career with 11 points, adding three triples, pulling down four boards, and dishing out three assists in a busy stat line, seeing more court time in place of the injured C.J. Hyland.
Redshirt junior Cord Stansberry, who returned to the starting lineup after missing Thursday's action, had nine points to go along with five rebounds and a career-high seven assists. Sophomore transfer Abdulai Fanta Kabba and freshman Samuel Dada both pulled down six rebounds as WCU controlled the glass for the third time in four games.
Stetson (1-3) was led by Collin Kuhl and Sean Morgan, both off the bench to score 12 points apiece, and Jamie Phillips Jr. added 10 points for the Hatters. The trio also led the way on the glass with five rebounds apiece. Calvin Sirmans III had seven points, four rebounds, two assists, and a team-best three steals.
Western Carolina (2-2) fired out of the gates quickly with a 15-4 run over the opening four minutes, including a perfect 5-of-5 from deep, to seize early control of the matchup as Kell and Soumaoro both had two 3-pointers in the early burst. Stetson settled into Sunday's action with a 14-4 run of their own over the ensuing five minutes to make it 19-18 Catamounts halfway through the opening 20 minutes.
After a pair of made Stansberry free throws, the Hatters responded with nine unanswered to take their first lead since 2-0. It was short-lived, though, as seven straight from the hosts quickly gave WCU the 29-27 lead with 4:13 to play in the half. The Purple & Gold kept the pressure up with a 9-4 run over the final 2:30 to take the 38-33 lead to the intermission.
Like the opening 20 minutes, WCU opened the second half scorching hot, going 6-of-9 from the field and burying three triples as part of a 15-4 run to stretch the lead to 53-37 with 12:56 to play. Ahead by 17, 61-44, the guests put together a quick 8-2 spurt to cut the margin down to 11, 63-52, with 6:36 to play in regulation.
Both teams put together runs over the ensuing four minutes, though, as Stetson cut the score to 10, 69-59 with 2:43 to play. But the Hatters wouldn't get it any closer as the Catamounts closed with seven of the final 11 points en route to a 76-65 nonconference victory.
Western Carolina put together another strong shooting performance from the floor, posting a 49.1 percent (28-of-57) overall, with an impressive 60.9% (14-of-23) in the second half. The Catamounts added a 12-of-28 (42.9%) outing from deep, including 8-of-18 (44.4%) in the opening half. They also added eight free throws at a 72.7% rate.
Stetson was held to 35.4% (23-of-65), including 28.6% (10-of-35) in the second half. The Hatters made six threes and were 13-of-19 (68.4%) at the charity stripe. The hosts had a 41-35 advantage on the glass with a 34-24 lead in defensive rebounds as both teams had 30 points in the paint. Stetson turned 18 WCU turnovers into 21 points while the Catamounts turned 10 Hatter turnovers into 12 points.
The Catamounts close out their season-long three-game homestand on Wednesday, Nov. 19, with a visit from mountain-rival UNC Asheville in the backend of a true WCU hoops doubleheader as both teams face off against the Bulldogs (5 p.m.) Tip-off of the nightcap is slated for 7:30 p.m. from Ingles Court at the Ramsey Center
Both games will be shown on ESPN+ (paid subscription required). Streaming audio from the Catamount Sports Network and live stats will be available online on CatamountSports.com.
Season tickets for the home portion of the 2025-26 Catamount men's and women's basketball seasons are on sale now through the first-floor Ramsey Center Ticket Office, by phone at (828) 227-2401, and online at CatamountSports.com/BuyTickets. Options include tickets for men's or women's and an "all-hoops" package for every home game in the Ramsey Center for both squads. Single-game tickets for both squads are also on sale.
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