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Full
Marcus Kell vs UNCG - FRONT
Ava Schmitt
86
Western Caro. WCU 8-18,4-11 SoCon
91
Winner Chattanooga UTC 20-8,12-3 SoCon
Western Caro. WCU
8-18,4-11 SoCon
86
Final
91
Chattanooga UTC
20-8,12-3 SoCon
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Western Caro. WCU 47 39 86
Chattanooga UTC 45 46 91

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | Greg Hartlage, Director of Media Relations

Kell Posts Career-High in Narrow Setback at Chattanooga

CHATTANOOGA, TENN.  – Redshirt sophomore Marcus Kell continued his torrid pace in league play with a career-high 31 points on Wednesday night, but a late scoring surge by Chattanooga allowed the Mocs to hold off upset-minded Western Carolina for a 91-86 victory in Southern Conference action at the McKenzie Arena.
 
Western Carolina led by three, 72-69, with 6:48 to play in regulation before Chattanooga used an 18-to-5 run to take the first double-digit lead of the night, 87-77. The Mocs then held on down the stretch to escape the scare from WCU, closing the night in first place in the SoCon standings.
 
Wednesday's 86 points for WCU mark the most scored by the Catamounts in a Southern Conference game this season and the highest in league play since scoring 85 back on January 12, against Mercer in an 85-82 home win. 
 
Kell connected on a career-high 11 field goals including four from beyond the arc on his way to the first 30-point performance of his career. The Rock Hill, S.C., native was also key on the glass on Wednesday, pulling down eight boards. He's eclipsed double figures in his last eight games, averaging 19.3 points per game to rank second in the SoCon over the stretch of games. He's also third in rebounds per game in that timeframe at 8.9, one of five players in the league to have multiple double-doubles in his last eight games.
 
With the 31 points, Kell is the first Catamount to go over the 30-point plateau since last January when Vonterius Woolbright poured in 36 during a home contest with the Mocs.
 
Classmate Cord Stansberry finished with 17 points on six field goals and a 3-pointer with a perfect 4-for-4 at the free throw line. He also added four rebounds and three assists. Senior Bernard Pelote picked up his fifth double-double of the season, scoring 14 points with four 3-pointers including one at the buzzer that provided the final tally. Pelote boarded a team-high 10 rebounds. Freshman CJ Hyland and junior Brandon Morgan both added seven points as the pair connected on their lone attempts beyond the arc.
 
Honor Huff led four Mocs in double figures with a team-high 27 points with six made 3-pointers, adding three assists and a blocked shot. Bash Wieland scored 23 points to accompany seven boards on the night. Frank Champion filled the stat sheet with 21 points on an efficient 8-of-10 shooting with eight rebounds and a team-high nine assists, just missing the triple-double. Trey Bonham rounded out the double-figure scoring for UTC with 11 points. Garrison Keeslar totaled nine rebounds to lead the Mocs.
 
A high-scoring opening half saw Chattanooga open quickly with the first five points before the Catamounts gained their footing with a 10-to-5 run to even the score at 10 just four minutes in. The Mocs scored the game's next six points before WCU embarked on a 15-point run over a 4:30 stretch to flip the score and give WCU a 25-16 lead with 8:27 to play.
 
Chattanooga (20-8, 12-3 SoCon) whittled into the lead with nine of the next 13 points, cutting the deficit to four, 29-25, before a Pelote three stretched it back to seven. The hosts scored a quick four points before Ice Emery and Stansberry paired up for a 7-to-3 spurt, stretching the lead to seven, 39-32.
 
The Mocs parlayed a 9-3 burst to cut the deficit to one, 42-41 before Stansberry answered with five of the next seven points before a late layup from UTC made it 47-45 at the intermission.
 
Both teams shot well in the opening half as the Mocs finished at 50% (16-of-32) with 7-of-16 (43.8%) from beyond the arc, while the Catamounts shot 51.6% (16-of-31) and buried an eye-popping 9-of-14 (64.3%) from range to lead to the high scoring opening 20 minutes. Kell had 13 points and Stansberry with 11 for WCU in the first half while Huff led the way with 15 for UTC, followed by 11 from Champion and 10 from Wieland.
 
Chattanooga used a 9-3 run out of the halftime locker room to jump in front by four before a layup by Chase McKey quickly cut it back to two with 16:05 to play. The hosts put together another 9-to-3 spurt to stretch the lead out to eight, 63-55 before Stansberry, Kell, and Pelote combined to put together a 12-4 run of their own to even the score to 67 with 8:22 to play.
 
Baskets by Pelote and a triple by Ice Emery pushed the Catamounts ahead by three, 72-69, with just under seven minutes to play in regulation. But the league leaders flexed their muscles over the next 4:53 by outscoring WCU 18-to-5 that gave the Mocs their first double-digit lead of the night, 87-77.
 
WCU pushed back with four quick points from Kell and Stansberry, but the Mocs continued to answer at the free-throw line before a Pelote three at the buzzer provided the final margin of 91-86.
 
The Catamounts finished at 41.7% (30-of-72) from the floor with 13 3-pointers at a season-high 50% rate and converted 13-of-14 (92.9%) at the free-throw line for another season-best mark. It's the 13th time this season that WCU has eclipsed 10 made threes in a game. Chattanooga posted a 49.2% (31-of-63) field goal performance, 11 threes at a 34.4% clip, and 18-of-23 (78.3%) from the charity stripe.
 
WCU won a tight rebounding battle on Wednesday by one, 38-37, including a 15-11 advantage on the offensive glass. Chattanooga outscored the Catamounts in the paint by 12, 40-28, and a slight one-point edge in second-chance points at 16-15. UTC led 17-2 in fast breaks, while the guests had a 17-7 lead in bench scoring.
 
Western Carolina (8-18, 4-11 SoCon) continues its road swing on Saturday, Feb. 22, with a trip to Birmingham for a matchup against Samford, who remained in third-place in the conference on Wednesday after falling 80-72 at home to Furman. Tip-off from Birmingham is slated for 3 p.m. ET / 2 p.m. CT.
 
Saturday's game will be broadcast on ESPN+ (paid subscription required), as live stats are also available via a link on 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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