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Paul Sherar - Chief Photographer

ASU junior guard Jaymi Wilson puts up the last two points of the game with 14 seconds on the clock in Tuesday night’s game versus the Catamounts. Despite Wilson’s effots, the Mountaineers fell 69-61.

Suspensions, poor shooting plagues
Mountaineers in loss to Catamounts

Josh Dernosek - Sports Beat

Poor shooting and the absence of two key players ailed the Appalachian State women’s basketball team in a 69-61 loss to a well-rounded Western Carolina University team Tuesday night.

The Mountaineers (9-17 overall, 5-12 SoCon) shot 29 percent from the field in a slow-starting first half. The lead changed three times before Western (16-10, 8-9) went on a 10-0 run with less than six minutes in the half.

Appalachian fought back, but the Catamounts kept the momentum throughout the half and held a 42-26 lead at the break.

The second half proved more productive for the home team.

On the shoulders of Lindsay Smith, Appalachian started with a 6-0 run to cut the lead to 10. Smith scored five points during the run, coming at a time of need for the struggling Mountaineers.

With 10 minutes on the clock the Catamounts pulled away to a 16-point lead after an Echols jumper.

Appalachian got back within eight with under four minutes to play but did not get closer despite the best efforts of Jaymi Wilson, who had the last two points of the game, hitting a layup with 14 seconds on the clock.

Led by All-Conference player Laura Echols’ 18 points, the Catamounts put three girls into double figures. Jennifer Gardner put up 14 points and 13 rebounds, making her the game’s only player to obtain a double-double.

With Aisha Bryant and Rebecca Norris out due to suspension, Appalachian needed other players to step up to pull out the victory over the Catamounts.

Smith stepped up to the challenge and came out with 12 points, the team high, but this wasn’t enough.

“It was nice to see Lindsey step up,” said coach Breedlove. “She played hard and aggressive.”

Despite the efforts of Smith and 38 percent shooting from the field, the Mountaineers couldn’t get out of a hole created in the first half.
Appalachian outscored Western 35-27 in the second half, but WCU’s
40 percent from the field proved to be enough to hold on for a SoCon victory.

The loss marked the final home game of the season for the Mountaineers. Prior to the game, ASU honored its four graduating players, as well as head coach Barbie Breedlove, who will resign at the end of the season.

Meanwhile, Rebecca Norris is expected back Saturday when the Mountaineers travel to the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga for their final regular season game.

Aisha Bryant is done for the regular season, but will be off suspension in time to play in the Southern Conference Tournament.

When asked about the suspension of the duo, Breedlove said, “life lessons have to be taught, and life lessons have to be learned.”

 

Paul Sherar - Chief Photographer

ASU head coach Houston Fancher was disappointed by the Mountaineers lack of aggression Monday night against the UNCG Spartans.

Loss to Spartans hands
ASU fifth seed in division

Chris Boyce - Sports Beat

The cloudy picture that was the Southern Conference’s North Division tournament seedings got a little cloudier Monday night after the Appalachian State University Mountaineers suffered an 83-68 loss to rival University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

The Mountaineers (10-16, 5-10 in SoCon) had hoped for a win over the Spartans (17-9, 10-5 in SoCon) coupled with a loss by Western Carolina University, but received neither and therefore find themselves in fifth place in the North Division.

Spartan guard Courtney Eldridge scored 16 points to go along with 11 assists, including several big plays at the end of the game, to preserve the victory. Forwards James Maye and David Schuck added 21 and 19 points respectively.

Appalachian State was led by Nate Carson’s 18 points and five rebounds. Guard Graham Bunn added 13 points and five assists off the bench.

Trailing by as much as 17 points with 10 minutes left in the game, Appalachian State launched another comeback, similar to the Mountaineers’ miracle turnaround against Davidson on Saturday.

A three-pointer by Matt Jones sparked a 20-9 Appalachian run fueled by seven points from Carson, including a huge three-pointer with 4:46 left to play, putting the Mountaineers down only six, 70-64.

But just as he haunted the Mountaineers last season with a 27-point performance en route to a 63-60 victory over Appalachian State in Boone, Eldridge delivered a critical series of plays to seal the victory for the Spartans.

Appalachian State failed to capitalize on three straight possessions, and after a jumpshot by Spartan Ronnie Taylor put UNCG up 72-64 with 2:43 left to play, things fell apart for the Mountaineers.

Guard Corwin Davis attempted a tough 12-foot jumpshot only to have it blocked by Eldridge, who recovered the ball.

A frustrated Davis was then called for an intentional foul for grabbing Eldridge’s jersey, sending the 5-foot-10-inch senior from Boston to the line for two free throw attempts. Eldridge hit both attempts and then on the inbounds went coast to coast through the Appalachian State press to score a layup, putting UNCG up 76-64.

After a jumper by Mountaineer forward Donald Payne, Eldridge once again broke down the Appalachian State press and his off-balance pass to a cutting Maye for a layup plus the foul gave the Spartans a commanding 79-66 lead with 1:47 left to play.

The loss was another frustrating one for the Mountaineers who saw a five-point first half lead dwindle to one before a last-second three-pointer by Maye, putting UNCG up 34-32 at the end of the first half.

After the game Eldridge was pleased with his team’s effort, especially in transition.

“We were able to score in transition,” said Eldridge. “We excel in transition and we got some easy points from it.”

In addition to the Spartans’ ability to score in transition, it was UNC Greensboro’s ability to break the Mountaineers’ full-court press that made the difference late in the game.

“They were pressing, and the best way to beat a press is to attack,” said Eldridge.

“We came out flat and shot ourselves in the foot,” said Graham Bunn of the Mountaineers’ early second-half performance. “We played about nine good minutes of basketball, and that’s not good enough to win a big game like this.”

Appalachian State attempted a season-low one free throw in the contest, a disappointment to Appalachian State head coach Houston Fancher.
“We weren’t aggressive, and we didn’t draw as much contact,” said Fancher. “We weren’t as passionate tonight and consequently we didn’t get to the line.”

The current Southern Conference standings put the Mountaineers in fifth place in the north division. With Western Carolina’s 77-71 win over Wofford, Appalachian State will need a little help to move into the north division’s fourth seed.

The Catamounts play on Feb. 23 at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga while the Mountaineers host the hottest team in the SoCon, East Tennessee State University, winners of six straight at home, the same day as Senior Day.

In addition, a loss against ETSU and a Virginia Military Institute victory over Davidson College that same day would land the Mountaineers in the sixth spot and a tough 8:30 pm game on the first day of the Southern Conference Tournament.

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Mountaineers feel Bryant’s
absence in loss to Western

James Nix - Sports Beat

Appalachian State University felt the absence of junior guard Aisha Bryant Tuesday night in its 69-61 loss to Western Carolina University.

Bryant served the first of a two-game suspension due to what head coach Barbie Breedlove called a “violation of team policy.”

“There are life lessons that have to be taught and life lessons that have to be learned,” said Breedlove.

Also, sophomore guard Rebecca Norris missed the loss to the Catamounts due to a one-game suspension. She will return to action Saturday when the Mountaineers take to the road against the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.

Bryant will return to practice Monday following the Chattanooga game, giving her some practice with the team before the Southern Conference Tournament.

Bryant is Appalachian’s highest ranking representative in SoCon standings, averaging 13.1 points a game. Those 13 points could have made the difference against Western, in a game which would have given the Mountaineers its sixth conference win.

Appalachian (9-16, 5-11 SoCon) next faces the Mocs, currently ranked second in the conference with a 18-7 overall record and a 12-4 SoCon mark.

This will prove a difficult task with Bryant’s absence.

Brant, who became the first Mountaineer in the history of the women’s program to score 30 or more points in two consecutive games Feb.4 against East Tennessee State University, should play a major factor in the upcoming conference tournament.

Despite Bryant’s absence in the final two games, the Mountaineers will enter the tournament as one of the bottom four seeds and will play the first day of the tournament.

Breedlove said she feels her decision to suspend Bryant will not hurt the team’s already low rankings.

“We know we’ll be playing in that Thursday game no matter what,” said Breedlove. “You just have to teach life lessons.”

The return of Bryant should help Appalachian get past that first round.

The Mountaineers have more to work on before the tournament even with Bryant’s help, however.

Against Western, Appalachian continued to show its inability to shoot the ball well consistently. The team shot only 28.6 percent in the first half before bumping it up a notch to 37.8 percent in the second half.

This is an obstacle Breedlove said she plans to work on going into the tournament next week.

“We’ve got to do a lot more shooting ‘cause we just didn’t shoot the ball well tonight,” she said.

With Bryant in the game, Appalachian has been able to hit more clutch shots in the second half to pull out a couple of victories.

Against Western, those clutch shots were not there to help Appalachian overcome the Catamounts in the final minutes.

Another weakness Appalachian needs to improve for the tournament is its rebounding, offensive and defensive.

“We plan to continue working on our rebounding,” said Breedlove. “We’ve really made that a point of emphasis lately.”