STATS | NOTES | QUOTES | PHOTO GALLERY
 
CHATTANOOGA---Tre' McLean's 23 points and nine rebounds led the Chattanooga Mocs to an 82-78 triumph over Samford in Southern Conference action Saturday evening. The Mocs jumped out to a large first half lead before holding on in the end.
 
The advantage was as much as 18 in the opening 20 minutes for the home squad. It was 10, 72-62, with 4:37 to go after a four-point play from McLean following a foul and technical on the Bulldogs. The visitors chipped away at the advantage.
 
Greg Pryor's free throws with 1:18 remaining made is a 76-69 Mocs lead. Four straight missed free throws were offset by layups from Wyatt Walker and Demetrius Denzel-Dyson with the latter shaving the margin to three, 76-73 inside 37 seconds.
 
Casey Jones responded with two made free throws after the Mocs got the ball into the frontcourt. Josh Sharkey motored down the court scoring on a layup with 22.9 to play. On the inbounds play, McLean was fouled immediately by Denzel-Dyson. He knocked down both attempts for a five-point lead.
 
Denzel-Dyson kept the pressure on with a 3pt with 6.2 ticks left after a McLean block defending Sharkey. McLean was fouled quickly again. He made one of two for a three-point advantage as Samford pushed the ball up the floor. Christen Cunningham found Triston Chambers in the right corner, but the freshman saw the ball go through his hands turning the ball over with less than three seconds to go.
 
Johnathan Burroughs-Cook's free throw made it a four-point win as Cunningham's mid-court heave bounced off the rim at the buzzer.
 
Justin Tuoyo and Jones joined McLean in double figures with 13 and 12, respectively. Makale Foreman added nine points making three-of-five from 3pt range.
 
Denzel-Dyson posted 22 points and 10 boards. Cunningham had 12 points and six assists, while Sharkey matched his 12 in reserve adding four steals. Chambers chipped in 11.
 
RECORDS
Chattanooga – 15-4, 6-1 in the SoCon. Samford – 13-7, 4-3 in league play.
 
STAT OF THE GAME
Mocs grabbed a season-high 16 offensive rebounds. Click the stats link above for a complete look at today's statistics.
 
QUOTABLE
"They are really good top-to-bottom. Guarding the three was the biggest concern coming into the game. I was proud of our team. Down the stretch we didn't do a great job closing the game out at the free throw line. No matter what, we didn't flinch and kept playing the game. It was a big win for us." – Coach Matt McCall. For more thoughts from coach and student-athletes, click the quotes link above.
 
NOTABLE
Mocs extend current win streak to five in a row overall, and six straight in the series over the Bulldogs. For further breakdown on stats and facts from today's game, click notes link above.
 
SOCON SCOREBOARD
Mercer 70, at Western Carolina 50
at Furman 89, VMI 72
at UNCG 81, The Citadel 72
 
NEXT UP
Wednesday, Jan. 25 vs. VMI. Tipoff is at 7 p.m., airing on the WatchESPN app (ESPN3) as well as locally on the airwaves on Real 96.1 FM in Chattanooga. Links to live stats, video and audio (Mocs Sports Network) are on GoMocs.com's men's basketball schedule page.
 
GoMocs.com is the official website of the Chattanooga Mocs. Buy officially licensed gear in our online store. The Mocs can also be followed on their official Facebook page or on Twitter. Find out how to join the UTC Mocs Club and support more than 300 student-athletes by clicking here.
 
ABOUT CHATTANOOGA BASKETBALL
- The Mocs are by far the most successful program in the Southern Conference since joining the league in 1977-78. The team has won 30 titles with 11 regular season, 11 tournament and eight division.
- 16 NCAA Tournament Appearances (11 DI): 1961 (DII), 1973 (DII), 1975 (DII), 1976 (DII Runner-up), 1977 (DII National Champs), 1981, 1982, 1983, 1988, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997 (Sweet 16), 2005, 2009, 2016
- 11 SoCon Tournament Crowns: 1981, 1982, 1983, 1988, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997, 2005, 2009, 2016
- 11 SoCon Regular Season Championships: 1981, 1982, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 2016
- 8 Division Titles: 1995, 1997, 1998, 2002, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2011
- The 1997 team went to the NCAA Sweet 16 with wins over Georgia and Illinois.
- 5 SoCon Players of the Year: Willie White (1981-82), Keith Nelson (1991-92), Tim Brooks (1992-93), Chad Copeland (1993-94) and Johnny Taylor (1996-97).
- 3 SoCon Defensive Players of the Year: Z. Mason (2014), Justin Tuoyo (2015, 2016).
- 4 SoCon Coaches of the Year: Murray Arnold (1982, '83), Mack McCarthy (1986, '92, '93), Will Wade (2014) and Matt McCall (2016).
- 9 NBA Draft Picks: Walter "Moose" McGary (1973 & '74), William Gordon (1977), Wayne Golden (1977), Russ Schoene (1982), Nick Morken (1982), Willie White (1984), Gerald Wilkins (1985, 13 seasons) and Johnny Taylor (1997 1st Round).