Cullowhee, N.C. – Closing out its final multi-game road swing of the 2025-26 regular season, Western Carolina men's basketball makes the short trip to Spartanburg, S.C., on Saturday afternoon for a matchup with second-place Wofford at the Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium.
Saturday's matchup with the Terriers is slated for a 4 p.m. tip-off and will be shown regionally on South Carolina ETV and Public Radio (SCETV) throughout the Palmetto State and parts of western North Carolina, and simulcast on ESPN+ (paid subscription required). Fans can also follow the game with live audio coverage through the Catamount Sports Network, available locally on 105.7 FM WRGC (wrgc.com) and streaming online at CatamountSports.com. Live stats are also available via a link on CatamountSports.com.
The Catamounts enter the weekend with a 4-7 league record after falling in a tight 81-78 decision on the road at UNC Greensboro on Wednesday. Wofford (8-3 SoCon) earned an 81-67 road decision at VMI, giving the Terriers wins in five of their last six games to climb further into the top half of the league's standings just past the midpoint of the SoCon season.
Men's Basketball Matchup: Western Carolina (8-14, 4-7) at Wofford (16-8, 8-3)
Date: Saturday, Feb. 7
Time: 4:00 p.m.
Site: Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium (Spartanburg, S.C.)
Live Stats: Sidearm Stats
Live Video: ESPN+ (paid subscription required) or SCETV
Live Audio: Catamount Sports Network
Radio: 105.7 FM / 540 AM WRGC
Twitter: @CatamountMBB
MEDIA CENTER
About Western Carolina:
Marcus Kell sank a late jumper with 25 seconds left to push Western Carolina in front by a pair, 78-76, as the Catamounts rallied to erase a 12-point second-half deficit at UNC Greensboro on Wednesday night. However, the Spartans used the charity stripe late to not only tie but ultimately pull in front in the final seconds to escape with an 81-78 SoCon victory at the on-campus Bodford Arena.
Kell led the Catamounts with a game and season-high tying 27 points, his fourth 20-point performance of the year. The Rock Hill, S.C., product connected on 10 field goals, including three from beyond the arc, while also pulling down a team-best seven rebounds. Freshman Tahlan Pettway added a career-best 14 points on 5-of-6 shooting and buried both of his 3-pointers.
In SoCon play, the Catamounts have climbed to third in the league in scoring at 78.9 points per game, while ranking fourth over the entire season at 78.1. In league play, redshirt junior Cord Stansberry leads the squad at 15.5 points per game, followed by Kell at 14.2 per game. Graduate transfer Julien Soumaoro rounds out the double-figure trio at 11.0 points per contest. As a group, WCU has five 20-point individual outputs in league action, as Stansberry has three with Kell the other two.
The Catamounts have continued to crash the boards in 2025-26, averaging 38.8 rebounds per game through 22 contests, second in the SoCon. The Purple & Gold maintain the lead in the league in offensive rebounds per game (13.86).
Freshman Samuel Dada leads the Catamounts in rebounding with 7.0 per game, ranking seventh in the SoCon. He is followed by sophomore transfer Abdulai Fanta Kabba, who is eighth in the league in rebounding at 6.55 boards per game. Kabba returned to action on Wednesday in Greensboro. Both players sit among the league leaders in offensive rebounding: Dada's 62 offensive boards (2.8 per game) rank second in total offensive boards. Kabba checks in tied for fifth in total offensive rebounds with 53.
In conference play, Dada is second in the league with 43 offensive rebounds, ranking second in the league at 3.91 offensive boards per game. He's also fifth in overall rebounds at 8.36 per contest. Tidjiane Dioumassi averages 3.36 assists per contest, ranking in a tie for seventh in the league. The product of Paris, France, is also fifth in the SoCon in league play with a 2.18 assist-to-turnover ratio. Kell ranks seventh in league play at 47.5% shooting from the field. Dada is fifth in the league at 1.27 blocks per game in conference play, with 14 rejections, fifth in the SoCon.
Scouting the Opposition:
Wofford (16-8, 8-3 SoCon) enters Saturday winning four of its last five, including a 14-point victory last time out against VMI. The Terriers have wins over Furman, Samford, Mercer, and Chattanooga in recent action, with their only blemish coming against first-place ETSU last Sunday.
The Terriers, tabbed ninth in the preseason poll, have a pair of four-game win streaks this season, going 8-3 in Spartanburg, with two of those three losses coming in league play to the Bucs and Chattanooga.
Sophomore Kahmare Holmes leads Wofford's offense with 19.0 points per game, second in the SoCon. He has scored in double figures 19 times with 20-or-more points 11 times. His 36 points against Samford were the second-highest single-game scoring output by a player in the SoCon this season. Holmes has done it all over the court thus far with a 47.9% field goal percentage, sixth in the league, while burying 32 threes.
Junior Nils Machowski averages 16.6 points over 24 games, with 22 games in double figures. Machowski ranks eighth in the league in scoring, with a pair of 30-point games, including 37 against The Citadel, the most by a SoCon player this season. Machowski has been strong from deep, making 67 threes as Wofford sits second in the league in 3-point percentage at 35.2%. He's tallied three double-doubles, including in two of his last three games against Chattanooga and VMI.
In SoCon play both Holmes and Machowski are amongst the best in the league in scoring as Holmes sits second at 21.3 points per game followed by Machowski at 20.9 checking in at a two-way tie for third.
Junior Cayden Vasko rounds out the trio in double figures for the Terriers at 10.2 per game as he's improved his per-game average in SoCon play to 13.3. Vasko has 14 games in double figures with a season-high 26 last time out against VMI. Vasko leads the team with 98 assists, third in the SoCon at 4.1 per game average, fifth in the league.
Along with freshman Brian Sumpter, Holmes leads the team with 5.7 rebounds per game. He also leads the conference with 45 steals, followed by 28 thefts from Vasko. Sumpter sits second in the SoCon with 36 blocks at a 1.5 per game average, which is third.
Head coach Kevin Giltner started his first season in Spartanburg after a successful playing career at Wofford. He spent six years on staff at Virginia Tech, following former head coach Mike Young to Blacksburg. Giltner is a five-time SoCon champion as both coach and player.
Last Time vs Wofford:
Cord Stansberry eclipsed the 20-point plateau for the third time this season to lead Western Carolina as the Catamounts closed the 2025 calendar year and opened their Southern Conference slate with a tight, 79-74, loss to visiting Wofford on Ingles Court at the Ramsey Center.
Stansberry finished with 20 points on five field goals, including three from beyond the arc, while also making all seven of his free throws. Graduate transfer Tidjiane Dioumassi posted his best performance in a Catamount uniform with 13 points and five rebounds while dishing out a team-best five assists.
Series History:
Winners of four straight in the series, Wofford holds a tight 38-33 lead in the all-time head-to-head meetings entering Saturday's game in Spartanburg. Wofford holds an 18-8 record in home contests against the Catamounts, with wins in each of the last two meetings from Spartanburg.
Up Next:
Following Saturday's action, the Catamounts return to the friendly confines of Ingles Court at the Ramsey Center for a midweek showdown against The Citadel on Wednesday, Feb. 11. The action with the Bulldogs is slated for a special 6 p.m. start and will be shown regionally through the Nexstar family of stations (check local listings) and simulcast on ESPN+ (paid subscription required). Streaming audio from the Catamount Sports Network and live stats will be available online 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).
