STATS | NOTES | QUOTES | PHOTOS | ABOUT CHATTANOOGA BASKETBALL
 
NICEVILLE, Fla.---The Chattanooga Mocs won the 2019 Emerald Coast Classic with a 63-60 nail-biter over Jacksonville State. The Mocs came back from nine down late in the first half to lead by as many as nine late before holding on for the 63-60 victory.
 
Matt Ryan (18) and Jonathan Scott (15) combine for 33 points to pace Chattanooga. Jacara Cross had a game-high 19 for the Gamecocks with Ty Hudson adding 12.
 
The key spurt began with 7:05 to go in the first half. Maros Zeliznak put JSU ahead by nine, 23-14. The Mocs locked down defensively. They held the Gamecocks scoreless for nearly nine minutes aiding a flip of script. It started a 39-21 spurt as two Stefan Kenić free throws put the Mocs up nine, 53-44, at the 4:28 mark.
 
"These guys are young," Coach Lamont Paris said. "They're fragile at times. Just to see that number get flipped, there's no inspiration better than when you come out in the second half and take care of business like that."
 
The two teams traded buckets before the Gamecocks stormed back. It took just 2:44 to get the game even again at 55-all after three straight scores from Cross. Scott quelled the tide with a three-pointer late in the shot clock to right the ship.
 
The Mocs won the free throw contest the rest of the way for the win. There was tension. Leading 61-58, Chattanooga fouled with 3.0 seconds to go to take away the ability to tie on a three. De'Torrion Ware made both free throws then JSU quickly fouled David Jean-Baptiste on the in-bounds pass with 1.8 on the clock. He calmly sank two free throws and Derek St. Hilaire's half-court heave was off the mark for the final tally.
 
"It's just good to come down here and get two wins in two days and bring a championship back," Ryan shared. "Just keep building, it's good for our confidence."
 
It's the 37th regular season title for Chattanooga. That dates back to the start of the 1977-78 season the first at the DI level for the program. Jean-Baptiste was named to the all-tournament team.
 
"Our execution was pretty good," Scott added. "We had a little problem getting to the ball, getting rebounds. We needed to do a little better in that regard. Our leadership is what stepped up. We played well when Matt [Ryan] was pushing us to be better, and that helped for sure."
 
The Mocs 5-game road show concludes Tuesday with the Southern Conference opener against Western Carolina. After approximately 2,000 miles of travel over a two-week period, the Mocs come home on Dec. 8 to take on Tennessee Wesleyan. Tickets are available on GoMocs.com or by calling (423) 266-MOCS (6627).
 
RECORDS
Chattanooga 5-3 | Jacksonville State 2-4
 
QUOTABLE
"The bulk of it was that we made some mistakes defensively, but at the end of the day, you can always save the day by getting a rebound. There were so many scrums and I felt like they came out with all of them. You have to rebound the ball and be committed to boxing a guy out, gnawing and clawing to get that ball. Good offensive teams will make you pay for not being able to do that." – Coach Paris on JSU' late run.
 
"Yesterday was a little rough for me…it was the first game in a long time I didn't make a three. Talked with coach last night and this morning and just kept firing without trying to force it. Just take the open looks and they went down today." – Ryan on shooting performance after tough first day.
 
Check out all we heard at the link above.
 
3 NOTES TO KNOW

• The Emerald Coast Classic is played on the campus Northwest Florida State College. The junior college was formerly Okaloosa-Walton Community College. Legendary Mocs Coach Murray Arnold led OWCC to the 1995 NJCAA National Championship.
• Five wins in the month of November for just the third time in program history (2015, 2016).
• Third time in the last four years facing Jacksonville State in the title game. Defeated the Gamecocks 62-52 in the 2015 Emerald Coast Classic but lost 77-75 in overtime of the 2017 Cayman Islands Classic in Chattanooga. All three meetings were setup by wins over Alabama State. Guess the Mocs will see JSU again in 2021?

Check out all the notables at the link above.
 
3 STATS TO KNOW

• Chattanooga made six of 11 efforts each inside and beyond the arc in the second half.
• Ryan and Scott combined to shoot 8-14 (57.1%) from 3pt range. The rest of the squad was 2-11 (18.2%).
• -7 rebounding margin with a season-low 27 boards. JSU converted 10 on the offensive glass into a 15-4 advantage in second chance points.

Take a deeper dive into the numbers at the link above.
 
MBB UPCOMING GAMES
Dec. 3: at Western Carolina | 7 p.m. | Current Rec.: 5-2 | Next Opp: Chattanooga (Dec. 3)
Dec. 8: Tennessee Wesleyan | 1 p.m. | Current Rec.: 3-5 | Next Opp: Pensacola Christian (Dec. 3)
Dec. 11: at Virginia Tech | 8:30 p.m. | Current Rec.: 6-2 | Next Opp: No. 1 Duke (Dec. 6)
 
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.