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Monday, 23 January 2012 20:56 |
After a month of inconsistency, the Appalachian State men’s basketball team (8-10, 4-4) put together perhaps its best game of the season, topping rival Western Carolina (9-11, 3-4) 84-72 Saturday in the Holmes Convocation Center.
Despite a disappointing loss to Wofford Jan. 19, ASU showed that it was finally close to “putting it all together,” a term that’s been preached frequently by players and coaches alike.
Against Western, Appalachian showed that it’s a talented team capable of matching any opponent.
The game was a back-and-forth contest. It started off with a hot-shooting Catamounts team that built a lead by as many as eight with six minutes to go in the first half.
But junior forward Jamaal Trice stepped up and erupted for 12 points in the first half, highlighted by five points and a steal in the final 30 seconds. Trice snagged an errant Trey Sumler pass, which turned into a coast-to-coast layup for Trice - who finished through a Sumler foul to give ASU a 33-29 halftime lead.
“I had the open shot and let it go and it went in,” Trice said. “I just do what I can on the court to help our team win. We’re all on a mission."
Trice finished with 21 points on 7-11 shooting and added two steals.
Along with Trice’s scoring, senior Omar Carter scored 20 for the Mountaineers. Carter was 12-12 from the foul line and converted eight straight to close the game.
The senior, who didn’t start the game for the Mountaineers, was impressed with his team’s performance against Western.
“We dialed in mentally and that’s what we have to do to finish games,” Carter said. “Even though they came back and took the lead, we took a big step today. Games before, we’ve let them back into the game and couldn’t close it out and lost.”
ASU also received some strong play from the post, as Isaac Butts put together one of his better scoring efforts on the season. Butts, who did not enter the game until late in the first half, scored 11 points in just 14 minutes. The center showed flashes of his talent, using quick footwork to get open layups around the rim.
“What we stressed in the pregame meeting was energy,” Butts said. “We got a good lead on them, but we let off the gas a little bit and coach called our number, so as players we have to go out there with some energy and get the lead back.”
Along with Butts, senior Andre Williamson had 10 points and 11 rebounds and junior Nathan Healy had seven points and four rebounds. Williamson, who shot 80 percent, was automatic with his one-handed turnaround from inside the paint.
Following the game, head coach Jason Capel was thrilled with his team’s effort.
“Good win,” Coach Capel said. “Every win is a good win, but for us, we gave maximum effort. Everybody who put a foot on the floor contributed and gave good effort.”
On a more comical note, Western starting guard Harona Mutombo wore the number 0 Saturday, after Western left his jersey back at home. Mutombo wore his teammate Tom Tankelewicz’s jersey, while Tankelewicz wore a practice jersey with the number 14.
“We had a mess up. We didn’t pack all of our jerseys; the two senior jerseys weren’t there. We did the best we could,” said Larry Hunter, Western’s head coach.
The Mountaineers, now in sole possession of second place in the SoCon North, can take over first place with wins this weekend. Appalachian will take on UNC-Greensboro on the road Jan. 26 and will return home to take on Elon Jan. 28 at 2 p.m. in the Holmes Convocation Center.
Elon is currently in first place in the SoCon North.
Story: JAKE AMBERG, Sports Editor
Photo: AMY BIRNER, Intern Photogapher |
