Final Stats
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. --- Despite 28 points from Stephen McDowell, the Chattanooga men's basketball team was unable to capture its second victory of the season as the Mocs fell Wednesday night 82-70 to East Tennessee State. The loss drops UTC to 1-7/0-1 on the 2008-09 campaign and 0-6 away from McKenzie Arena, while ETSU improves to 7-3.
Aside from McDowell's team-leading 28, Ty Patterson and Nicchaeus Doaks both contributed with 10 points each for the Mocs. On the boards Khalil Hartwell brought down a game-high 10 rebounds, while Doaks recorded nine in the loss.
East Tennessee State had big nights from both Kevin Tiggs and Courtney Pigram as the two combined for 66 of the Bucs total points. Tiggs was 11-of-13 from the field in the game and led all scorers with 32 points, while Pigram had 24 points, 18 from beyond the three-point line.
At the break both teams went into the locker rooms deadlocked at 41-apiece. East Tennessee State's Courtney Pigram led all scorers with 17 points while UTC's Stephen McDowell poured in 12 points.
In the opening half the Mocs went 12-of-36 from the field, while the Bucs were 13-of-28. Chattanooga was clutch from the behind the charity stripe as the Mocs were 10-of-12 from the free-throw line.
The story of the game came down to shooting for both teams in the second half. In the final period ETSU shot 50 percent (15-30) from the field, compared to the Mocs' 29.4 percent (10-34). The Buccaneers set the tone early in the period as the Bucs sprang ahead with a 14-4 run and never looked back.
East Tennessee State would lead by as many as 12 in the half, but the Mocs were able to cut the lead down to one with 4:24 left to play in the game. However a quick 6-0 Buccaneer run would extend the ETSU lead back to seven as the Bucs held on for the 82-70 victory.
Chattanooga will be back on the road Saturday, Dec. 20 in game three of its current four-game road trip as the Mocs head to Ita Bena, Miss., for a matchup with Mississippi Valley State. Tip off is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. ET.
