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UNCG downs Mountaineers in SoCon tournament |
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Thursday, 20 March 2008 |
by RYAN WIXTED
Sports Editor
Eleven first half turnovers and poor shooting was the downfall for the Appalachian State University men’s basketball team March 8, as they fell to the University of North Carolina at Greensboro 63-46 in the quarterfinals of the Southern Conference Tournament.
Appalachian shot 35 percent from the field and went 4-of-14 from 3-point range. They also struggled at the free-throw line only converting 2-of-9.
“We had a tough time getting our offense going today,” ASU head coach Houston Fancher said. “I thought [UNCG] defended us well and forced us into some tough shots. You get into a situation down here where if you don’t make a couple shots it tightens you up a little bit and we got tighten up a little bit today."
 Photo by Derek DeSha
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Starting the second half down by seven, Appalachian had to score quickly in order to keep the contest close.
The Spartans were able to use every ASU turnover to their benefit,
as they tallied eight points off 12 turnovers. With ASU senior forward
Donte Minter in foul trouble, the Mountaineers had to rely on senior
forward Jeremy Clayton to carry the workload in the low post.
Clayton finished the night with 13 points, seven rebounds and four blocks.
Minter only finished with four points, way below his team leading average of 14 points per game.
“It was a physical game. They fronted the post and played me well,”
Clayton said. “We just didn’t match their intensity in the post. They
played hard and deserved to win the game.”
Spartan senior forward Kyle Hines provided the scoring presence for UNCG, finishing with a game-high 20 points and 10 rebounds.
“It’s a combination of many things, with my teammates getting me the
ball and setting good screens,” Hines said of his ability to score. “I
just work hard and play hard to get different angles against my
opponent. I try to outwork my opponent the best I can.”
Despite their shooting woes, Appalachian was able to go on a 9-4 run and cut the deficit to six points with 7:50 to play.
But baskets by Hines and Spartan senior guard Kevin Oleksiak pushed the
lead back to double-digits and tarnished any hopes of an ASU comeback.
“[Hines] was in foul trouble and there were a couple of key turnovers
that kept us in the game,” UNCG head coach Mike Dement said. “We got a
couple of defensive rebounds and were able to make a few runs from our
rebounding.”
Appalachian was out rebounded 38-33.
The key statistic, however, was bench points. The Mountaineers only got eight points from their bench, while UNCG had 17.
ASU sophomore guard Kellen Brand added 12 points on 5-of-11
shooting, and junior guard Eduardo Bermundez collected seven points and
seven rebounds.
For the five seniors on this year’s team the loss marked the end of
their collegiate careers, but the body of work they left behind won’t
be forgotten.
“They have taken Appalachian basketball to another level,” Fancher said
of his seniors. “[They] won 75 games over the four years they’ve been
here. The year before they played, we won nine games. Now they have
taken us to another level. They won 43 over the last two years [and]
all five will graduate on time. They’ve put in a tremendous amount of
effort and energy building our program back up, and I am really proud
of what they’ve done for our program.”
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