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Jonathan Williams | The Appalachian
Herbert Jones dunks against three USC Upstate players in Monday night's game. Jones had 10 points and eight rebounds. |
Men's basketball outlasts D-II Spartans in 84-74 win
by Brad Norman
Senior Staff Writer
Appalachian State almost got a little too into the holiday spirit. The Mountaineers almost gave a basketball game away.
USC Upstate, a Division II program, jumped out to an early 15-2 lead and led for most of the first half before the Mountaineers were able to put them away.
ASU used a 30-10 run to end the first half and a 16-0 run to start the second half to get some distance on the Spartans, before hanging on for a harder-than-expected 84-74 victory.
“From the last four minutes of the first half and the first six minutes of the second half they basically did what they wanted,” Spartan coach Eddie Payne said.
ASU head coach Houston Fancher said he was not surprised that USC Upstate played such a competitive game.
“I was preaching to this team for the last three days … that [USC Upstate] could play,” Fancher said.
Although Fancher may have preached to the team, the message did not get all the way through.
“He did emphasize all week how good they were, but I don’t think it really sunk in,” senior forward Herbert Jones said.
At the start of the game, it was the Spartans who looked like the Division I caliber school, while the Mountaineers just looked lost.
The Spartans used a full-court press early and forced three turnovers in the first three minutes of the game.
After the Spartans took an 11-2 lead, Fancher yanked his entire starting lineup from the floor.
“Coach was trying to show that it doesn’t matter who you are or if you start, if you aren’t doing your job then you’re going to be benched,” Jones said.
The Mountaineers got back in the game on the strength of Noah Brown’s shooting. The senior guard hit three consecutive three-point field goals in the middle of the first half to trim the early lead to seven points.
The Mountaineers did not take the lead until there was 1:47 left to go in the half when freshman Jeremy Clayton tipped in a D.J. Thompson miss.
ASU, leading 43-38 at halftime, would go up 80-55 with 7:00 left before the Spartans ended the game on a 16-4 run.
Thompson led the Mountaineers in scoring with 20 points, a career high.
Brown added 18 points, four assists and four steals on the night.
Chris McFarland, Clint Deas and Derrick Thomas, the other three ASU starters, combined for just four total points.
McFarland, who came into the game averaging 18.4 points a contest, was held scoreless in 23 minutes of action.
Appalachian was able to make up that deficit by getting a boost off the bench.
Sophomore guard Demetrius Scott came off the bench to score 15 points. His previous career high was eight.
Jones contributed 10 points and eight rebounds. Clayton rounded out the top scorers with 12.
Bench key to ASU victory
by Chris Zaluski
Graphic Designer
It wasn’t the big names that led the Mountaineers to victory last night over the USC Upstate Spartans. Help came in unexpected places for the struggling Mountaineers.
When all five starters were benched four minutes into the game, relief came in the form of sophomore guard Demetrius Scott.
This was Scott’s first game of significance this season due to an injury in his left foot. He didn’t waste the opportunity to shine.
Scott led the Mountaineers on a 16-0 run in the beginning of the second half by making two consecutive three pointers while forcing two steals with his solid defense.
“I’ve been waiting patiently to get back,” Scott said. “ I’m just going to try to go out there every game and play hard.”
Scott ended the game with a season high 19 points. His “Charlie Hustle” attitude also influenced the play of some other players.
The team leader in big plays was senior forward Herbert Jones, who scored 10 points and had 4 dunks.
Jones feels that this game was good eye opener for Appalachian.
“It showed that it didn’t matter who you were or what you’re your name is, if you don’t do your job then your not going to play,” Jones said.
The strong play of the Mountaineers’ bench was a deciding factor in the win last night.
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