EMORY, Va. – The Emory & Henry College Men's Basketball Team (4-10, 1-5 SAC) battled until the final whistle, but came up just short against defending South Atlantic Conference Tournament champions Catawba College (7-1, 5-0 SAC) Saturday afternoon. The Catawba Indians had four players reach double-digits in scoring on their way to a 95-91 victory.
The Basics
FINAL SCORE – Catawba 95, Emory & Henry 91
LOCATION – Emory, Virginia
VENUE – Bob Johnson Court at the John Rutledge King Center
RECORDS – Emory & Henry (4-10, 1-5 SAC); Catawba (7-1, 5-0 SAC)
How It Happened
- The game began evenly-contested through the opening five minutes of play and the score stood at 10-9 in favor of E&H with 14:56 remaining in the first half. The teams continued to trade blows throughout an opening stanza that saw eight ties and seven lead changes. The tally was all square at 35-35 with just over three minutes on the clock before the visitors from Salisbury ended the frame on a 12-4 run to take a 47-39 advantage into the halftime break. Junior forward Cade Looney (Grundy, Va.) paced the Wasps in the first with nine points and eight boards.
- Catawba started the second half on the front foot, as they pushed their lead out to as many as 16 at 70-54 with 12:48 remaining. The Wasps responded with a quick 8-0 run to trim the visitors' advantage to 70-62. The Catawba Indians increased their advantage back out to double-digits at 76-66 but once more the Wasps answered with nine of the following 11 points to cut the deficit to just three with seven minutes left. E&H clawed back to jump back ahead at 84-83 on a pair of free throws from freshman guard Keishawn Hampton (Buford, Ga.) with 3:41 to go. Catawba would retake the lead moments later and pushed it out to five, but the Wasps would not go away and a drained three-point jumper from junior guard Gabe Brown (Clintwood, Va.) and a free throw from Looney made it just a one-point basketball game with just under two minutes remaining. The Wasps just could not get over the hump as Catawba finished the game with five of the final seven points to escape with the win.
Emory & Henry Individual Leaders
- Brown led the Wasps with 21 points, two rebounds and a pair of assists while Looney had a double-double with 14 points, 12 rebounds and a helper. Junior guard Jalen Leftwich (Lynchburg, Va.) added 18 points, five rebounds, three assists and a blocked shot.
- Sophomore forward Jacob Dar (Omaha, Neb.) finished with 13 points, seven rebounds, three blocks, an assist and rattled the rim with a pair of monster dunks to help the Wasp effort. Hampton chipped in with 11 points, a pair of assists and a blocked shot.
Catawba Individual Leaders
- DeAngelo Epps was the offensive leader for the Catawba Indians as he posted a double-double with 21 points, 11 rebounds, two assists and a steal. Peyton Gerald added 18 points, seven rebounds, three blocks, two steals and an assist.
- Javeon Jones recorded 15 points, three boards, and four assists to go along with Justin Mitchell's 15 points, five rebounds and two helpers.
A Deeper Look
- Emory & Henry shot 43.8 percent (28-for-64) for the game with ten made three-pointers (38.5%). The Wasps went 25-for-32 (78.1%) at the free throw line.
- Catawba hit 37-of-82 (37.5%) of its field goal attempts, connecting on nine triples (37.5%). The Catawba Indians hit 70.6 percent (12-of-17) of their free throws.
- Catawba held a 46-41 rebounding margin and led on the offensive glass, pulling down 20 offensive boards compared to 14 for the Wasps. The visitors converted those second chances into 21 points, while E&H manufactured just ten points off of second chances.
- Catawba pounded the ball inside as the Catawba Indians outscored the Wasps by a 46-32 margin on points in the paint.
Up Next
- Emory & Henry makes the trip to Jefferson City, Tennessee on Wednesday, January 10 to take on the Eagles of Carson-Newman University. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. as the second half of a doubleheader with the women's team.
---E&H---