CHARLESTON, S.C. --- Omar Wattad's (Johnson City, Tenn.) career-high 30 points propelled Chattanooga to a 69-68 Southern Conference road win at The Citadel Thursday night.  The Mocs improved to 9-8, 5-0 leading the SoCon's North Division, while the Bulldogs drop to 5-12, 1-4 in the South.

Wattad's 30 came on career highs of 11 field goals made (19 att) and eight three-pointers (14).  It's the Mocs first 30-point effort since Stephen McDowell's 32 against Samford in the 2009 SoCon Tournament semifinals (3/8/09).

DeAntre Jefferson (Bloomington, Ill.) had 10 points and eight rebounds to help key the win.  All eight boards for Jefferson came in the second half.  Ricky Taylor (Brownsville, Tenn.) added 10 points, five rebounds and a season-high four assists.

Cameron Wells led the Bulldogs with 17 points, four rebounds and six assists.  Zach Urbanus and Austin Dahn had 15 apiece.

The Mocs opened the second half with a Keegan Bell (Hazel Green, Ala.) three-pointer for its largest lead of five, 38-33.  It marked 10 unanswered points for UTC carrying over a 7-0 run to end the first half.

The Citadel answered with an 8-0 run of its own to re-take the lead 41-38 on an Urbanus trey at 18:25.  The lead was extended to seven, 47-40, on a Wells jumper at 15:34.

Chattanooga battled back with a 10-0 run on another Bell three-pointer at 13:28 for a three-point advantage, 50-47.  Urbanus was up to the task with the three-ball of his own just 23 seconds later to knot the game at 50-all.

The game continued its ebb and flow as back-to-back jumpers from Troy Cage (Baton Rouge, La.) and Chris Early (Huntington, W. Va.) gave the Mocs a 56-52 lead. But there was another response from the Bulldogs.

Brian Streeter and Mike Groselle scored on three of four possessions to give The Citadel a 58-56 lead with 5:46 to go. It was Wattad's turn. 

The junior wing hit his seventh trey on the Mocs next trip down the floor to regain the lead 59-58 at 5:15.  Then, it was Wells' time.

Honored as The Citadel's all-time leading scorer prior to the game, Wells gave the Bulldogs a one-point advantage, 60-59 with 4:49 remaining.  On the ensuing possession, Wattad and Jefferson combined for heroics.

After what seemed like a rare three-point miss by Wattad, Jefferson grabbed one of his five offensive rebounds which set up Wattad's eighth downtown basket and a 62-60 Mocs lead at 4:10.

Matt Clark's two free throws at 3:55 tied the game at 62-all only to see Taylor drill a three-pointer 13 seconds later for a 65-62 UTC lead.  Two Jefferson free throws pushed the margin to five, 67-62, at 3:15, but Clark was on task nailing a trey of his own from the left corner at 2:43 to make the lead a perilous two points, 67-65.

Wattad scored the Mocs final two with a runner in the lane with 2:05 to go, 69-65.  A Wells free throw at 1:53 and layup at 1:10 provided a lot of drama as the Mocs clung to a 69-68 lead going into the final minute.

Dahn's three-pointer from the right corner was off the mark and Jefferson was once again big on the boards with 4.3 to play.  Jefferson missed the front end of a one-and-bonus giving the Bulldogs the ball after a timeout with 3.5 to go and nearly the length of the floor to play with.

The ball was inbounded to Urbanus who hoisted a long trey under pressure from Bell and Wattad which was just off the mark into Jefferson's waiting arms for the one-point win.

It marked the second one-point win of the year for the Mocs with both coming on the defensive end (Marshall 69-68).  Both games saw the Mocs comeback from significant second half deficits with seven tonight and eight at Marshall.

Bell overcame strong flu-like symptoms from Wednesday to play tonight.  He scored nine points with five rebounds managing to play 36 minutes.

Groselle added 12 points and a game-high nine rebounds for the Bulldogs.  It was a clean game as the two teams combined for just 15 turnovers (7 for Chattanooga).

The Bulldogs led by as many as nine points in the opening frame.  They led by eight, 25-17, when the Mocs went on a 16-6 run to close the half, seven unanswered.

The key play came with 23 seconds left in the half and the score tied at 33-all.  The Citadel called timeout to set up a final shot, but Mocs head coach John Shulman had other ideas.  He devised a half-court trap which shocked the Bulldogs and led to a steal by Taylor. 

Taylor then found Jefferson underneath the basket for the lay-in and a 35-33 halftime lead for Chattanooga.  Wattad scored 20 of his 30 in the first half including six threes.

Tonight is the start of a busy weekend for the Mocs with three games in five days.  Chattanooga returns home Saturday to host Samford before South Division leader College of Charleston invades on Monday.  Game times are slated for 7 p.m., and fans can access live video, audio and stats via Chattanooga All-Access on GoMocs.com.  The game will also be broadcast on the Mocs Sports Network on ESPN 105.1 FM in the Chattanooga area with the "Voice of the Mocs" Jim Reynolds.