STATS | NOTES | QUOTES | ABOUT CHATTANOOGA BASKETBALL
 
SPARTANBURG, S.C.---The Chattanooga Mocs made an early move in the second half but couldn't hold off Wofford in an 80-69 loss in Southern Conference play Saturday night. Jerry Johnson, Jr., led three Mocs in double digits with 19.
 
Kevin Easley added 14 and a team-high eight rebounds. David Jean-Baptiste chipped in 11 points, a career-high-tying seven rebounds and two steals. The Terriers were led by Fletcher Magee's 24 points as Cameron Jackson posted 16 points and a game-high 13 rebounds.
 
It was a see-saw battle entering the second half. Down one at the break, the Mocs came out on an 11-2 spurt to build an eight-point advantage. Johnson started it out with back-to-back post ups on Magee to start the half. Easley book-ended a Ramon Vila layup with two free throws and a three that forced a Wofford timeout at 17:49.
 
Thomas Smallwood's hook at the basket nearly four minutes got the visitors back to four points ahead, weathering Wofford's early efforts. The hosts scored the next nine points, however, to take a five-point cushion, 51-46 on the second Magee three in the spurt.
 
Johnson answered with a triple on the ensuing possession, and Vila tied it at 51-all on the following one. It was 53-53 with 11:00 to go when the Terriers pulled away. Matt Pegram's offensive rebound and put-back at 7:47 capped a 14-3 run taking an 11-point margin, 67-56. It surged to 17 points before late threes by Jean-Baptiste and Johnson provided the final score of 80-69.
 
Wofford scored 22 points off its offensive board work totaling 13 in all. It proved to be the difference in the game.
 
"At some point, you just have to put your foot down," Coach Lamont Paris stated. "If it was just because of pure ability, why did it take them so long to go up like that? They played better than us for a while, I know that, but we have to learn how to simply put our foot down. We need to get better at that. We need to provide some level of resistance so teams can't beat you with things their comfortable with."
 
Chattanooga and Furman are tied for fourth in the SoCon standings at 5-4. They trail Wofford (9-0), UNCG (8-1) and ETSU (7-2). Mercer (3-6), Samford (3-6), Western Carolina (2-7), The Citadel (2-7) and VMI (1-8) follow.
 
The Mocs return home next weekend hosting Western Carolina (Jan. 31) and ETSU (Feb. 2). Tickets are available on GoMocs.com or by calling (423) 266-MOCS (6627).
 
RECORDS
Chattanooga 10-12/5-4 | Wofford 17-4/9-0
 
3 NOTES TO KNOW
Check out the full complement of notes at the link above.

• 40th meeting in the series…fewest matchups against a current member of the SoCon…UNCG (44), VMI (57), Mercer (70), The Citadel (82), ETSU (86), Furman (87), Western Carolina (92) and Samford (98)…23-17 series lead over the Terriers.
• -15 rebound margin is a season low on the glass (27/42)…betters -13 (31/44) at No. 8 Michigan…-69 for the year in 11 road games (6.3 per game).
• The Mocs are at the half-way point in the conference race (9 games)…4-0 at home, 1-4 on the road…five of the final nine come in the cozy confines of McKenzie Arena.

 
3 STATS TO KNOW
Check out the full stats at the link above.

• 12 3pt for the Mocs…10th time with 11 or more…shot 41.4 percent from long range in 29 attempts.
• The Terriers shot just 39.3 percent in the first half, 30.8 percent beyond the arc…flipped the script in the second 20 making 51.4 percent overall, 62.5 percent from three.
• The 19 points for Jerry Johnson, Jr., is a season high against a DI opponent…netted 20 in the win over Hiwassee in November.

QUOTABLE
Check out all of what we heard at the quotes link above.
"We were playing in a way that would potentially concede a few more offensive rebounds, but in the first half, we kept it right where we needed. The second half they were being more physical, but you have to learn how to compete. It's just not realistic to feel like you can overcome 22 second chance points. It's not realistic to win." – Coach Lamont Paris on work on defensive glass.
 
"We just have to learn that teams are going to make runs, and we have to stick to what we're doing because we're going to make our run too. After a while, we just couldn't stop the bleeding, and then you start going away from the things that got you to that point. We just need to stick to what we're doing." – Sophomore guard David Jean-Baptiste.
 
SOCON SCOREBOARD
at The Citadel 84, VMI 82
Samford 75, at Furman 73
UNCG 88, at Mercer 81
ETSU 91, at Western Carolina 69
 
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
Jan. 31 vs. Western Carolina, 8 p.m. (DH with women facing WCU at 5:30)
Feb. 2 vs. ETSU, 4:30 p.m. (DH-Women vs. UNCG)
Feb. 7 at VMI, 7 p.m.
 
SOCON TOURNAMENT TICKETS
The Ingles Southern Conference Tournament Presented by General Shale is March 8-11 in Asheville, N.C. Tickets are available here on GoMocs.com as well as the Gate 1 Ticket Office at McKenzie Arena. Chattanooga Tournament Headquarters is at the Hilton Asheville Biltmore Park.
 
GOMOCS.COM IN A WORD FEATURE SERIES
David Jean-Baptiste – Engaged
Thomas Smallwood – Dad
Rod Johnson – Mayor
Kevin Easley – Goofy
Justin Brown – Waffle
Jerry Johnson, Jr. – Buckets
Jonathan Scott – Energy
Keigan Kerby – Hair
Duane Moss – Dwight
Ramon Vila – Everyman  
 
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.