NOTES/QUOTES | PHOTOS

CHATTANOOGA (November 25, 2024) – The Chattanooga Mocs men's basketball team erased an early double-digit deficit with a strong second half performance to win its fourth-straight game, defeating in-state foe Tennessee State 85-78 on the opening day of the Coke Classic MTE event Monday night inside McKenzie Arena.
 
Trailing 37-31 at the halftime break, Chattanooga (4-3) out-scored Tennessee State (3-4) 54-41 over the final 20 minutes by capitalizing at the free-throw line during the physical contest that saw 40 total foul calls. UTC finished 28-of-36 (77.8%) from the line during the win which included a hefty 24-of-29 (82.8%) mark in the second half.
 
Trey Bonham returned to form with a season-high 28 points on 11-of-18 (3-of-8 3PT) shooting while adding in seven rebounds and four assists during the victory. Backcourt teammate Honor Huff also posted a season-high with 19 points and went an efficient 10-of-11 from the charity stripe.

RECORDS/SERIES – Chattanooga 4-3 · Tennessee St. 3-4 · 36th Meeting · UTC now leads the series 23-13.
 
GAME FLOW/INSIDE THE BOX
1H 19:27 – Tennessee State scored the game's first five points in just 33 seconds; forcing UTC into an early timeout.
1H 18:40 – Trey Bonham scored four quick points to pull UTC within three, 7-4.
1H 16:06 – Brandon Weston (TSU) hit a step-back jumper to up its lead to eight, 14-6.
1H 13:10 – Justus Jackson (TSU) capped off a 6-0 Tigers run with a runner in the lane to make it 20-9.
1H 11:59 – An 8-2 run from UTC featured Bonham connecting from deep, allowing the deficit to shrink to five, 22-17.
1H 6:56 – A long scoreless streak for both teams saw TSU hold a 24-19 lead.
1H 3:22 – Honor Huff knocked down a deep triple to keep the deficit at five, 30-25.

HALF – Tennessee State 37, Chattanooga 31: TSU led for the entire half (19:56); UTC shot just 17.6% (3-of-17) from 3PT in the half; TSU shot 45.5% (15-of-33) from the field.
 
2H 17:44 – Bonham notched 1,200 career points on a three before a silky assist to Latif Diouf on the next possession gave UTC its first lead of the game, 42-41.
2H 15:48 – Bash Wieland finished at the rim on a baseline cut to tie things at 49-49.
2H 12:45 – Garrison Keeslar and Bonham hit consecutive threes to give UTC a slight 57-54 lead.
2H 8:23 – Jackson (TSU) hit a three to snap a scoring run from UTC, cutting its deficit to two, 64-62.
2H 4:42 – Two Collin Mulholland free throws extended UTC's run to 11-2, upping its lead to double digits, 77-67.
2H 3:25 – Ahmir Langlais (TSU) finished in traffic to stop the Tigers' drought, making it an eight-point game, 77-69.
2H 0:07 – Chattanooga would go 8-of-11 from the free-throw line down the stretch to seal the victory.

FINAL – Chattanooga 85, Tennessee State 78
 
KEY NOTES | MORE
- Chattanooga earned 36 trips to the free-throw line during the win… 29 attempts in the second half (24-of-29, 82.8%)… finished 28-of-36 (77.8%) for the game… the 28 made FT's is the most against a non-conference opponent since 30 against Alabama State on 11/20/2016.

- Trey Bonham hit 1,200 career points with his 19^th of the night… finished with season and game-high 28 … career tally includes stops at VMI (601), Florida (167) and Chattanooga (441)… added seven rebounds and four assists.
 
- UTC has led only once this season at halftime (32-30 vs. Johnson, 11/21)… ultimately erased an 11-point deficit that occurred midway through the first… largest deficit to overcome at home since a 13-point disadvantage against Gardner-Webb last season (12/19/23)… that game ended with a Trey Bonham halfcourt buzzer beater.

POSTGAME QUOTES | MORE
Trey Bonham when asked about his dominant performance.
"Yeah, the season kind of started off a little slow for me. So having a game where I got in that zone, felt good. Finally, I knew I've been putting in work, so I knew it was going to come eventually. But yeah, it just felt good to get back in that zone."

UP NEXT – Chattanooga vs. Bryant – Wednesday, Nov. 27 – 2 p.m. ET – ESPN+ – McKenzie Arena (Coke Classic)
 
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