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| Tournament, season end with loss
to Chattanooga |
Josh Dernosek
Sports Major Beat |
Foster Hunt | The Appalachian Shawn Hall (10) drives towards
the basket against a UTC defender during the second round of SoCon
Tournament action. Appalachian’s season ended as the Mocs
won 98-67.
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The University of Tennessee
at Chattanooga missed only 18 shots in their massacre over Appalachian
State University at tahe Southern Conference Tournament in Charleston,
S.C.
UTC (20-8,) shot an astonishing 72 percent from
the field for the game compared to Appalachian’s sub-par 41
percent, securing the victory over the Mountaineers (19-10) 98-67.
The nation’s No. 2 scoring offense was no
threat to put the ball in the net as the Mocs could have taught
a shooting clinic with their offensive performance.
“I think we did a great job on [Graham] Bunn
and we did a great job guarding [Shawn] Hall,” Chattanooga
head coach Jeff Lebo said. “[Hall] couldn’t really get
anything going tonight, and I think it’s because we played
some tough defense.” |
Hall and Bunn led the
Appalachian charge with 18 and 13 points respectively, but Chattanooga
saw three players with at least 20 points, whose point production
out scored the Mountaineers by one 68-67.
“We had too many droughts tonight,” ASU head coach Houston
Fancher said. “We would score on two possessions then we would
not score on four or five.
“Against a team like Chattanooga that has as many offensive
weapons as they do, you have to score with them. We didn’t
tonight and we did that when we played them [in Chattanooga],”
he said.
Both Nate Carson and Chris McFarland netted 10 points and pulled
down three boards, numbers much lower than fans have come to expect
out of such crucial components to the squad.
“The key of the game, I thought, was McFarland,” Lebo
said. “He hurt us with 22 points in the first game and he kept
them alive in the [first round] game against [The] Citadel.
“I think Tim [Parker] did a great job defending him in the
man defense, not letting him get off on a run.”
Aside from the offensive output of the red-hot Mocs, they out-rebounded
Appalachian 37-18.
The Mountaineers did not shoot very well, and Chattanooga made sure
second chance shots were kept to a minimum with their 28 defensive
rebounds.
The loss for the Mountaineers marks the last game seniors Bunn,
Hall, Carson and Josh Shehan will play in a black and gold uniform.
Although Appalachian did not make it to the promised land or even
win the conference, the season proved to be a major stepping-stone
for the Mountaineer program.
Appalachian was predicted to be last in the conference, with many
critics not giving them a fair shot.
Ending the season tied for first in the North Division and one win
shy of 20, Fancher said he gives all the credit to his group of
seniors.
“I told them that if this program is to go where we want it
to go and we look back at the turning point, it is these four seniors,”
Fancher said. “When they come back and see us competing for
a championship down here, we can look back at them and say ‘you
guys are the reason.’” |
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