Bucky Ball Reigns in Asheville
The opening matchup saw the No. 8 Mercer Bears face off against the No. 9 The Citadel Bulldogs, with the team’s sporting the exact same seeds in the opening matchup of the tournantournament as they did a little over a year ago.
The only major difference was the game was much closer, as the Bears held off a pesky The Citadel team in an 84-76 contest. The Bulldogs, which dropped a 66-41 contest without top player Austin Ashe last season, were in the game for a majority of the night.
The Bears and Bulldogs split the two regular-season matchups, with Mercer winning the most recent matchup, 87-78, between the two in Macon. The win over The Citadel marked Mercer’s fifth win in its last six games.
The win saw the Bears continue to shoot the ball at an efficient clip from both two-point and three-point range, but it’s been their shooting from three-point land as of late that has most around the league taking notice of late.
Over its last two games against Furman and The Citadel, not only hace the Bears scored 80 or more points in both games, but they are shooting a blsitering 56.6% from long-range, knocking down a combined 17-of-30 from long range.
In Friday’s night’s tourney opener, the Bears were able to knock down 8-of-15 shots from long range in the opening round win, which was all part of a 57% shooting effort (30-of-53) in the opening night win.
David Thomas continued his outstanding play of late for the Bears, leading the way with 27 points on a 10-of-15 shooting effort from the field and was 5-for-6 from three-point land. He also went 2-for-4 from the free throw line.
Thomas was one of five Bears in double figures, with second-team All-SoCon pick Jayln McCreary adding 14 points, with Alex Holt (11 pts), Robby Carmody (10 pts), and Jalen Cobb (10 pts) to round out the double figure scorers for Mercer.
The Bears and Bulldogs went back-and-forth in the opening 12 minutes, and with Mercer holding a 22-20 lead, the Bears created a little separation for the first time all night with a mini 7-0 spurt to build what was a 29-20 lead with a layup in the paint by McCreary to give Mercer the 29-20 lead.6:28 left in the opening half of play.
From there, Madison Durr would score five of the next seven in the game, as the Bulldogs pulled to within six, at 31-25, with 4:39 left in the opening frame. However, the three-and-a-half minutes later, an Alex Holt dunk allowed the Bears to take a 10-point, 37-27, lead with just 1:12 remaining in the half and the Bears and that would remain the score as the two teams headed to the locker room.
In the second half, the Bulldogs would get to back into the game, cutting the Mercer lead to five with 10:34 remaining in the game following a bucket by Stephen Millora-Brown in the paint.
However, that would be the last real threat the Bulldogs would pose the remainder of the night, as Mercer scored nine-straight points to take a 63-49 lead and the Bulldogs weren’t able to cut the deficit under double digits until a little over a minute remaining when Elijah Morgan connected on a three-pointer to get the Bulldogs to within eight 1:26 remaining.
However, it was a case of too little too late, as the Bulldogs could get no closer than six points from that point forward, and the Bears went on to the eight-point triumph.
The Citadel finished the game having been led by four players in double figures in the game, as Madison Durr led the Bulldogs with 22 points and five rebounds, connecting on 8-of-16 shooting from the field, including a 6-of-13 from the charity stripe.
Elijah Morgan chipped in with 18 points, while Quentin Millora-Brown and AJ Smith rounded out the double-figure scorers with 13 and 12 points, respectively. Millora-Brown added 12 rebounds to finish off the double-double performance
The Bears have scored 80 or more points nine times this season, including in five of the past six games. Mercer is 8-1 in those games, with the lone loss being an 87-80 setback to Samford
The Bulldogs finished the night connecting on 46.0% (29-of-63) from the field, which included a 29.4% (5-of-17) from beyond the arc.
The second game of the tournament between No. 7 East Tennessee State and No. 10 VMI would ultimately produce the largest margin of victory of the tournament for any team, and it would be the start of a run to the championship game for first-year head coach Brook Savage's Bucs, who made it through to the title game as the No. 7 seed, marking the fourth time in the past five seasons that the No. 7 seed has been able to break through and make the championship game.
The Keydets were once again without their leading scorer and best player Brennan Watkins, but it probably wouldn’t have mattered as ETSU was a buzzsaw for much of the ecvening.
The Bucs improved to 3-1 all-time in the tournament against VMI, while also improving to 43-25 all-time in Southern Conference Tournament play. The 32-point win by the Bucs was its largest since beating The Citadel by 34 points in (89-55) in the 1992 SoCon Tournament, which ETSU won as the top overall seed.
The Bucs and Spartans will be meeting for the fourth time in conference tournament play, as UNCG holds the slight 2-1 lead in postseason meetings. Two of the previous three meeting between the two have come in the championship game, with ETSU capturing a 79-74 win in the 2017 tournament, while the Spartans would return the favor the very next season, handing ETSU a 62-47 setback the very next season.
The win marked ETSU’s first in Asheville in the Southern Conference Tournament since 2021, when the Bucs defeated Chattanooga, 63-53, in the quarterfinals before bowing out in the semifinals with a loss to eventual champion and top overall seed UNCG, dropping a 77-65 contest.
In the win, the Bucs had 11 players score in the contest and shot a season-best 52% (32-of-62) from the field, while also finishing out the game with 18 assists. The Bucs also finished out the game by connecting on 11-of-20 from three-point land.
Tyler Rice came off the bench to lead ETSU with 13 points on 5-of-8 shooting from the field, while Jaden Seymour, Jadyn Parker and Maki Johnson each added 12 points to the ETSU cause. Ebby Asamoah and Braden Illic finished with 11 points apiece to round out the blowout win.
Illic’s final points came with a tad of controversy, as the result had been well decided and with time winding down towards the final buzzer, Illic’s three was good, which caused for an icy handshake line and a skirmish ensued with some pushing and shoving, however, no serious altercation ensued and the two teams retreated to their respective locker rooms inside the Harrah’s Cherokee Center.
ETSU was not crisp in the early stages of the game, but despite not really turning it on until the second half, the Bucs still managed to head to the half by scoring 42 points.
The Bucs trailed 20-16 when DJ Nussbaum knocked down a jumper just right of the paint with 12 minutes left in the opening frame. However, a 26-11 run over the next 12 minutes saw the Bucs take complete control of the game and assume control of the game, taking a 42-31 lead into the half.
ETSU’s dominance continued in the early stages of the second half, as the Bucs continued to add to its lead, increasing the advantage to 21 points when DJ Hughes found Seymour for an open three to make it 57-36 game with 15:53 remaining.
VMI was able to cut the deficit to 15 once more, but ETSU responded to push the lead back to more than 20 on a Maki Johnson triple, at 65-44, with 11:29 left. The Bucs then cleared the bench when Gabe Sisk found Tyler Rice in the open floor for a layup, increasing the lead to 30 for the first time all night, at 82-52.
Four Keydets finished the night with four in double figures, with Taeshaud Jackson leading the way with a double-double, using a 16 points and 10 rebounds.
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| Tournament Most Outstanding player Achor Achor vs. Mercer |
The Bulldogs were able to avenge an 88-84 setback to Mercer back on Feb. 17 in Macon. The Bulldogs were able to hold Mercer to just 36.8% () from the field for the game, and after Mercer had blistered the nets on 17-of-30 shooting from long-range in its previous two games, were held to just 22.2% (4-for-18) from long-range.
After taking a 37-28 lead into the half, using a 25-11 run down over the latter portion of the opening half, overturning a 17-12 over the final 13:22 of the half to take control of the game.
In the second half, the Bears could get no closer than eight points, with the latest of those eight-point margins coming after Jake Davis connected on a three-pointer with 10:23 remaining in the contest, making it a 55-47 game. The Bulldogs then used a strong defensive effort to close out the game, limiting the Bears to just one field goal and just four points over almost a six-minute stretch, stretching from the 10:23 mark until the 4:49 mark.
The Bulldogs, which shot 45.0% (27-of-60) for the game, including 41.7% (10-of-24) from three-point land, were led by a pair of players with 15 points, with both Rylan Jones and Garrett Hicks finishing with that exact total, while Achor Achor and Jermaine Marshall adding 12 and 10 points, respectively.
Mercer had three in double figures, led by 14 points from freshman point guard David Thomas, while Jake Davis and Jalyn McCreary finished with 13 and 11 points, respectively.
The second quarterfinal would result in the first upset of the 2024 Southern Conference Tournament, as No. 7 East Tennessee State took down No. 2 UNC Greensboro, 73-62, as it marked the second-straight season the No. 2 seed had been bounced early by the seventh seed. Last season, No. 2 Samford dropped what was a () contest in overtime to Chattanooga.
The Bucs controlled the game on both ends of the floor from the outset of the contest, and they were able to once again enforce their will on both the glass, as well on defense, and were the more physically imposing team against a UNCG team that has prided itself on that aspect of basketball over the past several seasons, dating back to the latter years of the Wes Miller era.
The win was ETSU’s fourth-straight, as the Bucs evened their record to 2-2 against the Spartans in the Southern Conference Tournament.
It marked the third-straight season that the Spartans have fallen at the first hurdle. UNCG dropped contests to both Samford (L, 64-66 ) and Wofford (L, 66-67) each of the past couple of seasons.
The loss was particularly disappointing for head coach Mike Jones and his team, as it saw a season that saw the Spartans win 21 games for a second-straight season, however, not even make it past their first game of the tournament after looking like a contender to make it back to the NCAA Tournament for the second time in a four-year span, and even owned a win at No. 14 Arkansas in mid-November. But the Spartans could never seem to find their rhythm offensively.
With ETSU’s advancement to the semifinals, it marks the first time in three years that the Bucs have been able to get past the first two rounds of the tournament. The No. 7 seed has made at least the semifinals of the SoCon Tournament each of the past three seasons.
This time around, however, the game wouldn't come down to the wire, as the Bucs made sure the game would be well-decided before that point.
Leading the way in the ETSU win was Ebby Asamoah, as the graduate transfer from the University of Delaware was able to tie a season-high with 24 points, as well as made three-point field goals, knocking down six after going an impressive 60% (6-for-10) from three-point range. At the conclusion of the contest, Asamoah had 94 threes on the season, which pulled him into a tie for fourth for threes made in a single-season, with 94.
Jadyn Parker's two blocked shots allowed him to set a new single-season record for blocked shots at ETSU, as his two swats gave him 73, surpassing Isiah Brown's 71 shot redirections set back in the 2009-10 season. With his eight rebounds, which included seven on the offensive end, Parker joined former greats Jeromy Rodriguez, Zakee Wadood, and Rodney English as the only players to reach triple digits in rebounds in a single-season.
Quimari Peterson finished the contest with 17 points, six rebounds and four assists, while Jaden Seymour completed his afternoon with 12 points, three assists and two steals. Karon Boyd led the Bucs on the boards with a career-high 12 boards. He also contributed four points, three assists and three steals.
The Bucs finished the afternoon connecting on 43% (26-of-60) from the field, which included a 50% (12-of-24) from three-point land. The Spartans finished the contest shooting 40% (24-of-60) from the field, which included a 25.9% (7-of-27) from long range.
The Spartans finished the contest with four players in double figures, with Jalen Breath leading the way with 11 points, while Donovan Atwell, Keyshaun Langley and Kobe Langley added 10 points apiece in the loss. For the Langleys, the
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| Chattanooga forward Tyler Millin (photo courtesy of Chattanooga athletics) |
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| Furman freshman center Cooper Bowser (photo courtesy of Furman athletics |
In sport, one of the hardest things to do is defend a title. The only thing harder than defending it might be knocking the crown off the defending champion's head, but that's exactly what No. 4 Western Carolina tried to do when it met No. 5 Furman in the final quarterfinal of the 2024 Southern Conference Tournament Men's Basketball Tournament late Saturday evening at the Harrah's Cherokee Center.
It was another classic overtime battle between the Paladins and Catamounts at the Southern Conference Tournament, and in the end, the victor would be the same one as last season by the same margin, however, only a round earlier, as the defending champion held off the potential title contender, 79-76, in overtime.
With the win, No. 5 Furman improves to 17-15 overall, while Western Carolina concludes its season at 22-10 and will evaluate any postseason invitations in the coming week ahead. The 22 wins ties a Division I school record, matching the 2009-10 Catamounts.
The win marked Furman's 198th victory since the start of the 2015-16 season, which is tied with UNCG for the most overall wins in the league in that same span. The Paladins also improved to 58-63 all-time in Southern Conference Tournament action, remaining perfect against Western Carolina, moving to 6-0.
The Paladins got a sterling performance from JP Pegues, who finished the contest with a game-high 28 points on 9-of-21 shooting from the field, which included a 6-for-11 effort from three-point range. He was also 4-for-5 at the free throw line. The junior guard from Nashville notched his 15th performance or 20 or more points in a game this season.
Pegues was joined in double figures for the Paladins by Marcus Foster, who finished with 18 points, while PJay Smith Jr. added 12.
Alex Williams was notable with eight points early in the game, but his impact defensively throughout the game could not be overlooked, as his job on league Player of the Year Vonterius Woolbright was notable down the stretch, and in combination with Foster, the two ended up holding Woolbright to just 11 points. Woolbright entered the contest as the SoCon's leading scorer, averaging 20.5 PPG.
Woolbright, who has five triple-doubles this season, threatened another one, as he also finished with 10 rebounds, while dishing out nine of the team's 12 assists.
The Catamounts were led in scoring in the contest by Kamar Robertson, who posted 17 points to lead three Catamounts in double figures. He was 6-for-8 from the field, which included a perfect 3-for-3 effort from three-point range. Tre Jackson finished the contest with 11 points to round out the Catamounts in double figures in the game.
The game would feature 16 ties and five lead changes, and after getting out to an early 11-3 lead, which included eight from Robertson, as well as a perfect 3-for-3 start from long range, the Catamounts definitely looked the part of being one of the favorites to take the 2024 Southern Conference basketball crown in Asheville.
The Paladins rallied, however, and an alley-oop dunk and free throw on a three-point play the old-fashioned way by Cooper Bowser got Furman to within one, at 13-12, and though the Paladins never held a first-half lead, Furman would remain within striking distance for much of the opening half of play.
The Catamounts would threaten to grow their lead to double digits on a couple of occasions in the opening half of play, before eventually achieving that goal. Western Carolina made three-straight triples, with the final two coming from Tre Jackson, as the Catamounts assumed a 40-28 lead with 4:11 remaining in the half.
The Paladins weren't going anywhere, though, as Furman used a 12-2 run to close the half, which included a pair of three-pointers from PJay Smith Jr. and one from JP Pegues, as the Paladins went to the locker room with all the momentum.
In the second half, Furman assumed its first lead, at 44-42, following a pair of free throws by Pegues at the 18:38 mark. The margin would never grow larger than four points for either team the remainder of the game. A Vonterius Woolbright layup with 2:27 remaining would give the Catamounts a 67-63 lead.
Marcus Foster answered with a layup for the Paladins on the other end, and then a flagrant foul was issued against Western Carolina for a hook-and-hold on the rebound attempt by Garrett Hien. Hien missed both foul shots, but on the hook-and-hold, the Paladins got the ball back underneath the WCU basket. Foster worked his way underneath the bucket and scored on another layup to tie the game, 67-67, with 2:04 left.
After misses on both ends by Kamar Robertson and a three-pointer in transition by Alex Williams, the Paladins would re-take the lead on a layup from Garrett Hien, who was fouled in the process, but missed the foul shot, leaving the Paladins with a 69-67 lead with 38 seconds left.
On the other end, Furman fouled Charles Lampten, but he missed both foul shots, but Woolbright corralled the rebound and converted the layup to tie the game, 69-69, with 29 seconds remaining. The Paladins had a chance to win the game in regulation, but Carter Whitt’s layup attempt rolled off the rim and was no good, sending the game into overtime.
Pegues missed a jumper to open the extra session, however, the PJay Smith got the offensive rebound and made a jumper in the paint to give Furman a 71-69 lead. It was the first of four-straight made field goals for the Paladins.
With the game tied, 76-76, following a layup by Woolbright with 1:13 remaining, Furman regained the lead with 47 seconds remaining off an excellent feed from Pegues to Whitt for the wide-open layup to give Furman a 78-76 lead.
Russell Jones Jr. then missed a well-defended layup on the other end with just 33 seconds remaining and the ball was rebounded by Carter Whitt, however, he would turn the ball over on what was a backcourt violation and it would be the Paladins' only turnover of the second half and was one of only six turnovers for the entire game for Furman, who did as good of a job taking care of the basketball as in any game of the 2023-24 season.
On the ensuing Catamount possession, Alex Williams played some absolutely stellar defense against Catamount star guard Vonterius Woolbright and he missed the layup attempt wide left and then Williams stripped the ball away from Woolbright on the rebound and the loose ball was corralled by Marcus Foster, who was immediately fouled.
Foster missed the first and made the second free throw of the two-shot bonus to increase the Furman advantage to three with 13 seconds left and on the next possession, Russell Jones Jr. missed a potential game-tying three with seven seconds left and the ball rolled loose on the floor, with Williams eventually coming up with it and dribbled out the clock on his way to a dunk after time expired, as the Paladins held on for a three-point overtime win over their purple rivals for a second-straight season.
It would set up a rubber match with top seed Samford in the first semifinal of Semifinal Sunday, making it a quicker than usual turnaround. It was one of the few tweaks made to the tournament time slots in order to protect the top two spots in the postseason, and after such a tough game that went late into the Asheville night, it was going to be a short turnaround before facing Bucky Ball, which by nature, forces teams to expend more energy than they wish in any scenario.
Day 3 (Semifinals/March 10, 2024)
The Southern Conference Tournament seemingly delivers the goods year-in and year-out, rarely ever disappointing in terms of producing multiple thrilling endings throughout the course of the weekend, and the 2024 Tournament will likely be mostly remembered for its final two matchups of the day in both the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds, respectively, with both needing overtime to decide and both seeing lower seeds emerge victorious.
In the final quarterfinal on Saturday night, Furman came back from a 12-point deficit in the first half to claim what was a 79-76 overtime win over Western Carolina. In Sunday night's epic semifinal classic, ETSU posted its comeback win with just over 14 minutes remaining in the game, trailing by 20 points with 14:16 left (54-34) only to use the press to help fuel a furious rally en route ton what was a unforgettable 85-84 overtime win over Chattanooga.
With former boss and ETSU head coach Steve Forbes looking on, the pupil Brooks Savage made his mentor smile at the end of Sunday night's game, and now Savage must figure out how to get his Bucs enough legs and energy to find enough for one more fight in Monday night's championship game against top seed and 28-win Samford.
It's been said that the penultimate stage of a tournament is the toughest hurdle to clear, and if you as any one of the Furman Paladins that made that magical run to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 43 years last March, they likely agree with that statement, as last season's semifinal win over Western Carolina was easily Furman's toughest.
Could Furman provide that type of opposition to top overall seed Samford this season? The answer was no, and despite fighting to the finish in a game that the Paladins were never really out of, a combination of solid defense played by unquestionably the best team in the SoCon coupled with tired legs from the night before were too much for Furman to overcome.
Even had the Paladins not played the night before, it would have been a tough task. The best team in the SoCon in 2023-24 ultimately won and was moving on to the championship, while the defending I champion gave up its crown and saw a frustrating season end.
Samford held No. 5 and defending champion Furman to 34.2% (21-of-61) and Achor Achor scored 28 points and ripped down 14 rebounds, as the Bulldogs became the 10th-straight No. 1 seed to reach the championship game, as the Bulldogs held off the feisty Paladins, 84-77, in the first of two semifinal matchups Sunday evening at the Harrah’s Cherokee Center.
With the win, the Bulldogs improved to 28-5 overall, while the Paladins conclude their 2023-24 season with a 17-16 overall mark. Furman finishes the season tied with UNC Greensboro for most wins since the start of the 2015-16 season, as the Paladins and Spartans both have 198 victories over that span. The Paladins are now 198-98 over the past nine seasons overall, while the Spartans sport a 198-100 mark.
The Bulldogs improved to 10-15 all-time in Southern Conference Tournament action, while also moving to 3-4 all-time against Furman in the tournament. The Bulldogs claimed two out the three meetings on the season, as Samford also held off Furman, 74-72, in Birmingham in late February.
Furman fell to 58-64 all-time in the Southern Conference Tournament, which includes a 12-18 mark in the semifinal round of the tournament.
The Paladins actually handed Samford its first of three SoCon losses, with a 78-68 win in Greenville, snapping the Bulldogs’ 17-game winning streak, which was tops in Division college basketball at the time.
Achor Achor finished his evening going 12-of-15 from the field, and went 1-for-1 from three-point range, as well as connecting on 3-of-5 from the charity stripe. The 14 rebounds matched a season and career-high for Achor, and marked his third double-double of the season.
Joining Achor in double figures in the winning effort were Jaden Campbell and Rylan Jones, who finished with 14 and 11 points, respectively.
The Paladins were paced in the losing effort by JP Pegues, who record his 16th game of the season with 20 or more points, following up his 28-point performance in the quarterfinal win over Western Carolina by adding 22 in the semifinals against Samford.
The native of Nashville, Tenn., closed out his junior season as a Paladin by connecting on 4-of-12 shots from the field, including 3-for-7 from long-range, and was 11-of-14 from the charity stripe.
Carter Whitt finished off one of his better performances of the season, adding 20 points on 7-of-11 from the field, including 4-of-5 from three-point land and was 2-of-2 from the line.
Furman got off to a quick start, and a Ben VanderWal layup of a missed three-pointer from Marcus Foster, who scored the Paladins' first eight points of the game, gave the Paladins their largest lead of the contest, at 23-14.
From there, the wheels became to run of the championship train for the Paladins, which would struggle to score for the remainder of the opening half of play, as the Bulldogs closed the opening half on a 20-5 run, which included a stretch for the Paladins that saw them miss their final 12 shots of the frame, which led to a 34-28 Samford halftime advantage. The Paladins finished the final 4:40 of the opening half without a field goal.
The Bulldogs assumed complete control of the game in the opening minutes of the second half, using a 14-7 run out of the locker room to assume a 48-35 advantage following three Jaden Campbell foul shots after he was fouled on a three-pointer by Alex Williams with 15:19 left.
Samford eventually took its largest lead of the night on a big dunk off the right side following a Paladin turnover, making it a 66-50 Bulldogs advantage with 5:40 left.
Furman employed its own version of a press to trim the Bulldogs lead to five following a JP Pegues three with 38 seconds remaining, however, it was too little too late for the defending champions, who finally had their crown stolen by the Bulldogs, as their will be a new Southern Conference champion in 2024.
For the game, Samford connected on 54.9% (28-of-51) from the field, which included just a 6-for-21 (28.6%) effort from three-point land. The Bulldogs shot 68.6% (22-of-32) from the charity stripe.
The Paladins on the other hand, connected on just 34.4% (21-of-61) from the field, which included a 28.9% (11-of-38) effort from long range.
The Bulldogs held a substantial 42-20 edge in points in the paint, while Furman finished the game holding advantages in points from turnovers (25-18), second-chance points (7-6), and bench scoring (32-24).
Samford also held a narrow 36-34 edge in total rebounds, as well as posting a 15-12 advantage in total assists. While Samford is quickly become this year's version of "America's Team" in March Madness, it's not been a rosy follow-up campaign for the 2023 league champions and what was "America's Team" last March after posting the first moment of the 2023 tournament with the magical win over Virginia in Orlando.
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| UTC point guard Trey Bonham |
The second semifinal between East Tennessee State and Chattanooga produced one of the more exciting games of the weekend, and it was a game that would see an old Southern Conference rivalry renewed at the penultimate stage of the tournament.
In recent tournaments, we’ve seen some similar trends of teams overcoming large deficits within games to tie games or even take leads in the second half, however, what transpired in the second semifinal matchup was truly remarkable, as well as a testament to what first-year head coach Brooks Savage in terms of a winning culture to the ETSU basketball program.
The win saw the Bucs improve to 19-15 overall, and will move on to play in the championship game for the 13th time in school history, while their opponent—the No. 1 seed Samford Bulldogs—will be taking part in their first tournament championship game since joining the SoCon in 2008. It was ETSU's 188th win since the start of the 2015-16 season, which is second to only Furman and UNC Greensboro in total wins over the past nine seasons.
The Mocs finished their 2023-24 season with a 21-12 mark. The Bucs improved to 45-25 all-time in the Southern Conference Tournament, including upping their overall mark to 10-8 in tournament games against the Mocs. Chattanooga fell to 64-35 in tournament play all-time.
The Bucs are 8-4 in title game matchups, and their eight tourney titles rank second only to current SoCon member Chattanooga, which has won 12. The Bucs became the four No. 7 seed to reach the title game in the past seven seasons, looking to become the first team to win four games in the tournament since 1939.
The Bucs kept their bitter rivals from the Volunteer State at 12 titles, preventing the Mocs from reaching their third-straight Monday night title tilt by using a furious second half rally, which saw Brooks Savage employ a tenacious press that Dan Earl simply had no answers or adjustments for.
ETSU would be led in scoring in the contest by Quimari Peterson, who dropped in a game-high 27 points on 8-of-24 shooting from the field, which included a 5-for-14 effort from three-point range and was also 6-of-9 at the charity stripe.
Ebby Asamoah, who fouled out with 4:38 remaining, posted 21 points and 21 minutes of action and was one of the key components in the epic come-from-behind win for the Bucs. Asamoah was 50% from the field, connecting on 8-for-16 from the field, which included a 5-for-9 effort from three. All-SoCon selection Jaden Seymour finished out the contest as the final Bucs player in double figures, finishing with 15.
Chattanooga was led by Jan Zidek, who posted 26 points, while Trey Bonham added 19 points and 11 rebounds in the loss. Honor Huff posted 16 points and Sam Alexis finished with 11 before fouling out.
Zidek, who was a grad transfer from Pepperdine, finished his final game for Chattanooga by going 7-of-12 from the field and 1-for-4 from three-point land, while posting an 11-of-12 performance from the charity stripe.
At the center of ETSU's magical come-from-behind win was their work on the backboards, and in particular, on the offensive glass, securing 24 offensive boards en route to a 52-41 advantage on the glass. It also led to an 18-3 advantage in second-chance points for the Bucs.
If that stat doesn't blow your mind, check this out. The Bucs won the game despite shooting 17.1% (6-of-35) in the opening half of play and only 32.9% (26-of-79) for the game. The Bucs found themselves behind 38-27 at the break.
As much as the scoring was a part of ETSU's memorable semifinal win, it was the sum of its parts that also played a major role with a number of winning plays that don't always show up on a stats sheet, including Allen Strothers, who came off the bench to record five steals and knocked away a late ball on an apparent clear breakaway layup for the Mocs off an ETSU turnover. Strothers' five steals in the game were a career-high.
The Bucs knocked down double-digit threes for the third-straight game, connecting on 12-of-37 () from long-range. Meanwhile, Chattanooga, which came into the game leading the SoCon and ranking fifth nationally in three-pointers made with 343, connected on just 6-of-17 long-range attempts in the contest. The Bucs ended up outscoring the Mocs 36-18 from beyond the arc.
The six threes by the Mocs marked just the 10th time this season that UTC has failed to reach double digits in made long-range efforts, with only the five made threes against Mercer on Jan. 17 in a road win ranking as a lower total of made threes this season.
The five made triples against the Bears marked the first time in 52-straight games in Dan Earl's short tenure as head coach of Chattanooga that the Mocs had failed to connect on at least six threes in a game, which had been the longest streak in NCAA Division I college basketball.
The Mocs also connected on just six threes a win over Southeast Missouri (W, 72-56) and a loss vs. Samford (L, 58-78). The 17 attempted threes were the second fewest of the season, with only the game against SEMO ranking lower, as the Mocs only put up 16 triple attempts in that contest.
Meanwhile, ETSU's 853 attempted threes this season and is a school record, while the 266 made threes rank in the Top 10 all-time in made three-point field goals.
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Day 4 (Championship Game/March 11, 2024)
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| ETSU forward DJ Hughes vs. Samford |
The win sees the Bulldogs punch their ticket to their first NCAA Tournament since 2000, and improve to 29-5 and will await its opening round NCAA Tournament opponent on Sunday,March 17 on CBS at 6 p.m. EST.
With the loss, ETSU's valiant effort over the course of the four-day tournament comes to an end, as the Bucs finish the season 19-16 and fall to 8-5 all-time in conference tournament title games. The Bucs were attempting to do something that hasn't been done in 75 years, which is win four games to claim the Southern Conference Tournament crown.
Clemson's four wins to claim the 1939 SoCon crown remains intact for at least another season. Monday night's title win by the top overall seed marks the seventh-straight season the No. 1 overall seed entering the Southern Conference Tournament has claimed the tournament title.The Bucs were the fourth No. 7 seed to play for the Southern Conference title game in the past five years. The No. 1 seed improved to 9-1 in the championship game over the past 10 seasons.
Samford's tournament title marks just the third NCAA Tournament appearance in program history, and the 29 wins are a school record. For the second-straight season, the winner of the Southern Conference Tournament ends a long streak of not having made the Big Dance, as last season Furman ended a 43-year NCAA Tournament drought to move on to the NCAA Tournament in 2023, while a year later, the Bulldogs will make their first NCAA Tournament appearance in 24 years, as well as their first as a Southern Conference member.
Should the Bulldogs win an NCAA Tournament First Round game, it would mark just the fifth time in league history that a team has won 30 games in a season. Samford would join NC State (1950-51), North Carolina (1945-46), Wofford (2018-19) and East Tennessee State (2019-20) as the only teams in league history. Not counting the COVID-19 compromised season, the SoCon champion has won at least 27 games in each of the past eight seasons.
The Bulldogs could join some rare company over the past 16 years should they win a game in March Madness, as one of three teams to win an NCAA Tournament game, alongside Furman (2023) and Wofford (2019). The Terriers were ranked in the NCAA Top 25 entering the 2019 NCAA Tournament before knocking off Seton Hall in the opening round of the tournament. The Paladins, which also achieved the program's first national Top 25 ranking during the 2018-19 alongside Wofford, won the school's first NCAA Tournament game in 49 years last March with their win over Virginia.
The ticket punched marks just the third time in program history that has happened, and the first two came in consecutive seasons, as the Bulldogs would make the 1999 and 2000 tournaments, respectively, as members of the Trans America Athletic Conference, which is now the Atlantic Sun Conference. The Bulldogs are 0-2 all-time in the Big Dance, with its last game in 2000 seeing Samford drop a 79-65 to Syracuse in the NCAA Midwest Regional.
Samford improved to 7-16 all-time against ETSU, which includes winning all three matchups this season, as the Bulldogs also captured a 75-72 win in Johnson City last month, while clinching the Southern Conference regular-season title with an 87-71 win over the Bucs a couple of weeks ago in Homewood. The Bulldogs have now won six-straight overall in the series dating back to the 2021-22 season.
Achor Achor was a major factor in both the semifinal and championship wins for the Bulldogs. Following a 28-point, 14-rebound effort in Samford's 84-77 semifinal win over Furman, the 6-9 junior from Melbourne, Australia posted his 25 points on 7-of-9 shooting from the field and 11-of-14 from the charity stripe, while also adding nine rebounds, including five offensive boards, to showcase his overall prowess on the offensive end. On the defensive end, Achor was also a menace, swatting away four ETSU shots, while also recording a pair of steals.
Marshall, meanwhile, recorded his 23 points on 7-of-14 shooting from the field and went 1-of-3 from three-point range and was 8-for-13 from the charity stripe. Jaden Campbell added 11 points to round out the double-figure scorers for the Bulldogs.
Rylan Jones, a steadying force throughout the 2023-24 season for the Bulldogs after transferring in from Utah State, finished the game with six points, four assists, two steals and no turnovers in 32:47 of total court action. The SoCon's "Newcomer of the Year" was a second-team all-tournament selection.
ETSU ended up the evening with a couple of players in double figures, with all-tournament selections Ebby Asamoah and Quimari Peterson leading the way, posting 18 and 17 points, respectively.
Asamoah finished out his career for the Bucs in stellar fashion, posting his 18 points on 5-of-15 shooting from the field and his 3-for-11 performance from three-point land saw the graduate transfer from Delaware set a new Southern Conference Tournament standard with 16 triples, averaging four a game over the course of the weekend.
The Bulldogs finished the title tilt connecting on 43.4% (23-of-53) from the field, while the Bucs connected on 40.7% (23-of-53) from the field for the game. The Bucs saw their string of three-straight games having made double-digit threes come to an end, as ETSU went just 6-of-23 (26.1%) from downtown. The Bulldogs, who led the SoCon in three-point field goal percentage for much of the season, finished connecting on just 27.8% (5-for-18) from long range.
ETSU held statistical advantages in second-chance points (13-6) and total rebounds (41-32), while Samford finished with advantages in points from turnovers (16-11), points in the paint (36-24) and fast-break points (10-2).
ETSU Effort
ETSU's effort and energy was almost astonishing throughout the entirety of the weekend considering they had to play four games in four days, nearly pulling off the unthinkable in the process. The Bucs posted an overtime, 85-84, win over Chattanooga in almost unbelievable fashion in a game that ran two hours and twenty-eight minutes before turning around and playing a two-hour and thirty-seven minute affair in the championship game, which featured 53 fouls whistled. ETSU claimed 168 rebounds over the course of four games, including 93 in the semifinal and championship alone to go along with 39 offensive rebounds in the two games.
The Bucs also set a SoCon Tournament record with 42 steals in four games, as the Bucs charted a combined 19 in the semifinals and championship and another 23 against VMI and UNC Greensboro in its first two games of the tournament.
Bucky's Ball!
The Cinderella Story might be head coach Bucky McMillan himself, as the former high school coach made the move to the Division I level almost seamlessly. He's a hometown product from Birmingham, and played his college basketball at Birmingham Southern where he was coached by current assistant coach Duane Reboul, who was one of the top coaches in the country for 17 seasons at the helm of the Birmingham Southern program.
Reboul led the transition for Birmingham-Southern from the NAIA level to the NCAA Division I level, as he led the Panthers to the 2004 Big South Conference Title, and was named Big South Coach of the Year on two occasions (2004 and '06).
McMillan now gets to take Bucky Ball--a high-intensity style of relentless full-court pressure that forces the opposition into miscues--to the Big Dance. Bucky Ball will also likely determine how long Bucky stays at the Ball as a Cinderella, and given the right matchup, the Bulldogs could cause some havoc in the Big Dance.
How It Happened:
The Bulldogs carried a narrow 40-38 lead into the halftime locker room, however, it looked as though Samford might run away with the game in the early portions of the game, as the Bulldogs went on an 11-2 run after the Bucs got the first points of the night on a layup by Karon Boyd.
The Bucs then went on a 9-2 run to get right back in the game. Neither team would lead by more than four points the remainder of the half, as the Bulldogs went to half leading by a bucket
The Bucs fell behind as nine on three occasions in the opening 10 minutes of the second half, with the last coming on an Achor Achor layup in the paint with 12:42 remaining to give the Bulldogs the 56-47 lead. ETSU, however, continued to manage from never letting the Bulldog lead grow to double digits. With the Bulldogs ahead 63-56 with 9:13 remaining, ETSU would mount one final surge, using an 8-2 run to get within 65-64 following an Asamoah jumper in the lane as the Bucs crowd came alive once again with excitement.
On the next possession, Rylan Jones responded with maybe the most important made shot of the night, taking his own deflected pass out of the air and re-directing it towards the basket in one-motion, and the ball splashed through the net to give the Bulldogs a 67-64 lead with just over six minutes remaining.
The Bulldogs would eventually grow their lead to three possessions, at a margin of seven points with just a minute remaining, as Jermaine Marshall connected on a pair of free throws to make it a 73-66 game. Samford would make only one more field goal for the game, as they would score seven of their final nine points from the line. In fact, over the final 6:23 of the game, both ETSU and Samford combined to make only four shots from the field.
All-Tournament Teams and Individual Awards
Ebby Asamoah, ETSU
Quimari Peterson, ETSU
JP Pegues, Furman
Achor Achor, Samford
Jermaine Marshall, Samford
Second team
Jaden Seymour, ETSU
Marcus Foster, Furman
David Thomas, Mercer
Rylan Jones, Samford
Jan Zidek, Chattanooga
Nathan Johnson, Samford
2024 Ingles Southern Conference Men’s Basketball Championship (Harrah’s Cherokee Center – Asheville, Asheville, N.C.)
Tournament Scoreboard
Friday, March 8 (ESPN+)
Game 1 – (8) Mercer 84, (9) The Citadel 76
Game 2 – (7) ETSU 98, (10) VMI 66
Saturday, March 9 (ESPN+/Nexstar)
Game 3 – (1) Samford 70 , (8) Mercer 57
Game 4 – (7) ETSU 73, (2) UNCG 62
Game 5 – (3) Chattanooga 75,(6) Wofford 57
Game 6 – (5) Furman 79, (4) Western Carolina 76 (OT)
Sunday, March 10 (ESPNU/ESPNEWS)
Game 7 – (1) Samford 84, (5) Furman 77
Game 8 – (7) ETSU 85, (3) Chattanooga 84 (OT)
Monday, March 11 (ESPN)
Game 9--(1) Samford 76, (7) ETSU 69
SoCon John’s 2023 SoCon Tournament Superlatives:
Best Dunk: Garrett Hien (Furman) vs. Western Carolina to tie the game, 63-63, late in regulation
Best Game: ETSU-Chattanooga/Semifinal No. 2 (ETSU 85, Chattanooga 84 OT)
Best Blocked Shot: Cooper Bowser's (Furman) consecutive blocks vs WCU in the 2nd half
Best Clutch Performance: Quimari Peterson scores final eight points vs UTC in semifinals.
Best Tournament Fans: ETSU
Best Moment: Achor Achor and Jermaine Marshall embracing as time expires and Samford returns to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 24 years.
Best Hairstyle: Jadyn Parker (ETSU)
Best Team: Samford
Best Coaching Move: Brooks Savage—Going all-out press vs. UTC in the second half.
Best Player not on the championship team: Ebby Asamoah (ETSU)
Best Shooting Performance: ETSU shot 39.4% (41-of-104) in the SoCon Tournament from three-point range.
Worst Shooting Performance: ETSU shot 17% (5-of-36) in the opening half vs. Chattanooga in the semifinals.
Most Embarrassing Moment: DJ Hughes (ETSU) hit the foam padding that surrounds the backboard on a free throw vs. UNCG/ Furman's Garrett Hien airballs a free throw vs. Western Carolina in the quarterfinals.
Best Career Milestone/Record: ETSU's Ebby Asamoah's 16 triples is a new tournament standard, while the 42 steals over the course of four games also set a new tournament mark.
Best Sportsmanship Moment: Jermaine Marshall giving a shout to the ETSU effort in the postgame press conference/Bucky McMillan saying that ETSU will one day cut those nets down as tourney champion in the postgame presser following Samford's historic title win.
--Mercer and WCU players flooding the portal after Gary's announced resignation and Gray's departure, including top freshmen David Thomas and Jake Davis, as well as WCU's DJ Campbell, Corneilous Williams and Bernard Pelote all entering the portal.
The SoCon Power Poll to end the season
1. Samford
2. ETSU
3. Chattanooga
4. Furman
5. Western Carolina
6. Wofford
7. UNCG
8. Mercer
9. The Citadel
10. VMI
Early contenders in 2024-25 (no certain order/dependent on players retained at this current moment 3/15/2024)
--Furman (17-16, 10-8 SoCon/5th)--JP Pegues and Alex Williams are slated to return, but the Paladins did suffer some attrition in the transfer portal, as second leading scorer Marcus Foster (17.5 PPG), as well as Carter Whitt, who started 14 games, have both hit the transfer portal. Foster spent five seasons in Greenville and was a key piece of the team that won a school-record 28 games last season and won an NCAA Tournament game. His dagger three against Chattanooga in the final two minutes was key in helping the Paladins find their way past Mocs en route to ending the Paladins' 43-year NCAA Tournament drought. With Pegues likely to return, he will be the preseason SoCon Player of the Year. Cooper Bowser will be one of the most improved big men in the league, and Eddrin Bronson and Tommy Humphries, who both redshirted, will likely be all-freshman team performers next season. Bronson might well be SoCon Freshman of the Year. Veteran big men Garrett Hien and Tyrese Hughey are also slated to return next season. Alex Williams could also be especially key to the Paladins' fortunes in 2024-25. He shot 40% (59-of-148) from three-point range this season. Williams was Furman's third-leading scorer, averaging 13.2 PPG.
--Samford (29-5, 15-3)---Bucky McMillan's(77-40/4th season) team still has an NCAA Tournament bid to enjoy and given the right matchup, the Bulldogs could become the third team in the SoCon to win a tournament game since 2008. What do we know about next season? Well. we know McMillan and the Bulldogs have proven enough to include them in the SoCon title contending conversations as long as McMillan is in town and as long as he continues to procure high-level talent. Achor Achor is slated to return and will be a contender for player of the year along with Furman's Pegues. AJ Staton-McCray is a potential first-team all-conference player, while rising sophomore point guard Josh Holloway figures to be one of the top point guards in mid-major hoops next season with his overall explosiveness.
--Chattanooga (21-12, 12-6 SoCon/3rd)--Trey Bonham and Honor Huff return to power a powerful Chattanooga offense, while Sam Alexis returns as maybe the league's top true center. The development of players like Noah Melson and Myles Che will be also be key. Look for the Mocs to again be challenging for an NCAA Tournament bid in 2024-25.
--Wofford (17-15, 10-8 SoCon/6th)--Head coach Dwight Perry and his Terriers overachieved this past season in many respects. The Terriers return one of the league's best guards, in Cory Tripp, while the development of guys like forward Jeremy Lorenz and guard Chase Cormier will be something to keep an eye on. Jackson Sivills and Dillon Bailey established themselves as two of the team's best shooters and will only see their long-range shooting numbers likely improve even more in 2024-25. The Terriers have also signed some outstanding prospects, including 6-2 point guard Luke Flynn out of the Peach State, as well as athletic shooting guard Kahmare Holmes, who also comes to Spartanburg from the Peach State.
--East Tennessee State (19-16, 8-10 SoCon/7th)--ETSU's run and momentum established from its tournament run to the championship game reminds me a lot of Furman's run in 2015, which it started the tournament as the No. 10 seed and went all the way to the championship game only to lose in the title game. The Paladins would carry that momentum to become a league title contender over the next eight seasons. This Bucs run to the title has the same type feel, and the momentum established by the run to the championship game will extend beyond even this season. It has the feels of a re-establisment of a mid-major power program. The only unfortunate thing is that Ebby Asamoah and Jadyn Parker won't be back, however, Quimari Peterson and Jaden Seymour are. Those two alone would make the Bucs a team to watch, but if you're looking for a wild card, expect it to come from Gabe Sisk, who will enter the 2024-25 season as one of the most improved players in the SoCon. The Bucs will be in the mix for the regular-season and tournament titles next season.
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