DAVIDSON, N.C.---Davidson (10-6/8-0) used a spectacular individual effort by Stephen Curry to pull away early in defeating the Mocs 85-58 at Belk Arena. Chattanooga (12-7/7-2) got off to a sluggish start, but it is still the leader in the Southern Conference North Division.
“You hit bumps in the road during a season,” said Mocs Head Coach John Shulman. “It's how you react to them that define your season. We have a week to prepare for Appalachian State and we need to get back to doing what we do best.”
Davidson opened the game on a 19-8 run to take the early advantage. Behind the hot hand of Curry, the Wildcats carried a 41-26 lead into halftime. Curry scored 27 points in the half hitting 10-of-15 shots with six three-pointers. The rest of the Davidson squad was just seven-of-20 (35%) from the floor.
In the second half it was more of the same as Davidson opened the half on a 10-0 run before the Mocs scored on a Khalil Hartwell free throw at 15:04. Matt Gwynne scored the first basket of the second half for Chattanooga with a three-pointer at 13:20.
Nicchaeus Doaks led the Mocs with 12 points and seven rebounds. Stephen McDowell added 11 points, three assists and two steals, while Marcus Watts added 10 points of his own..
Chattanooga shot just 36.7 percent (18-49) from the field and five-of-26 (19.2%) from three-point range. It committed 23 turnovers while forcing just 12 by the Wildcats.
Curry ended the game with 37 points hitting eight shots behind the arc. Jason Richards added 13 points and nine assists, while Boris Meno came off the bench to chip in 12. The Wildcats shot 50.8 percent (32-63) from the field for the game.
The Mocs return home to host Appalachian State next on Sat., Jan. 26, for a 3 p.m., matchup on SportSouth.
NOTES:
>Doaks career points-o-meter: 730 points
>McDowell has seven straight games with three or more three-pointers made.
>The Mocs have out-rebounded eight of nine conference opponents including tonight (36-32).
>Davidson has won the last five meetings with the Mocs.
>Davidson is No. 19 and Chattanooga No. 24 in the latest collegeinsider.com Mid-Major poll.
