BOX | NOTES/QUOTES | PHOTOS

CHATTANOOGA (January 23, 2025) – After racing out to an early double-digit lead, the Chattanooga Mocs men's basketball went cold from the floor in the second half and saw its three-game winning streak snapped in a tough 73-69 loss to Samford in Southern Conference action on Thursday night in McKenzie Arena.
 
Chattanooga (12-8, 4-3 SoCon) built a lead as large as 16, 42-26 (1:29), in the first half before Samford (16-4, 6-1 SoCon) scored the final five points of the half to close the halftime deficit to 11, 42-31. The Mocs shot just 34.8% (8-of-23) from the floor in the second half including an 0-of-9 total from three as the Bulldogs outscored the hosts 42-27 in the final half.
 
In a frantic finish trailing 71-69, Frank Champion came away with a steal off a Samford in-bounds pass with 17 seconds left which led to an open Honor Huff look from three to take the late lead. The attempt clinked off the front rim and Samford corralled the rebound and knocked down the game-sealing free throws on the other end.
 
Bash Wieland (18) led the team in scoring after shooting an efficient 6-of-8 from the field while adding a perfect 6-of-6 performance from the free-throw line. Trey Bonham (13) and Honor Huff (11) joined Wieland in double figures during the defeat.

RECORDS/SERIES – Chattanooga 12-8, 4-3 · Samford 16-4, 6-1 · 113th Meeting · UTC leads 68-45.
  
GAME FLOW/INSIDE THE BOX
FIRST HALF
∙ Chattanooga built an early double-digit lead, 14-4 (12:39), on the help of three defensive steals and threes from Honor Huff and Garrison Keeslar.
∙ Samford cut its deficit to three, 16-13 (9:46), after a quick 9-2 run with UTC going scoreless for a three-plus minute stretch during the span.
∙ Chattanooga regained its double-digit lead, 26-16 (6:01), with a 10-1 run over 2:51 of action capped off with a Bash Wieland mid-range jumper.
∙ After Samford cut its deficit in half to five, Collin Mulholland connected on back-to-back triples to help keep UTC ahead, 36-26 (2:07), at the first half's final media timeout.
∙ Building a lead as large as 16, 42-26 (1:18), UTC surrendered a 5-0 half-closing run to Samford and held an 11-point edge at the break.
 
HALFTIME: Chattanooga 42, Samford 31
 
SECOND HALF
∙ Samford once again used a strong push on both sides of the floor to get within single digits, 49-41 (15:54), at the first media timeout of the half.
∙ The run continued from the Bulldogs as an ultimate 14-3 spurt from the visitors tied the game, 49-49, with 14:25 left in the contest.
∙ After a pair of offensive rebounds and a strong effort in the paint, Frank Champion ended the second-chance possession and Samford run to tie it back at 51-51 (12:23).
∙ The Bulldogs took its largest lead of the game, 64-55 (7:03), on a Josh Holloway and-one conversion and Trey Fort layup.
∙ Chattanooga cut it to two, 71-69 (:17), in the waning seconds and saw Champion come away with a steal before a potential go-ahead three from Huff didn't fall and Samford closed things out.
 
FINAL: Samford 73, Chattanooga 69

KEY NOTES | MORE
∙ Chattanooga finished shooting 41.5% (22-of-53) from the field while ending a lowly 5-of-26 (19.2%) from deep… went 0-of-9 (0.0%) from three in the second half alone… finished 20-of-26 (76.9%) from the free-throw line… all six misses came in the second half (11-of-17, 64.7%).
 
∙ Chattanooga fell to 3-21 since the start of the 2022-23 season in games scoring 70 points or less… first loss this season when leading at the halftime break (7-0 entering tonight).
 
∙ Samford put together a 13-0 run in the second half to help overcome its deficit and jump ahead… run started when UTC led 49-38 (17:01)… the sprint saw the Bulldogs take a 51-49 lead (13:47)… the 13-0 run matches the longest allowed to an opponent this season (Evansville).

POSTGAME QUOTES | MORE
HC Dan Earl's overall thoughts after tough 73-69 loss to Samford.
"Credit to Samford, we all knew they weren't going to go away. We got off to a good start in the first half, I think we did a little bit of us missing shots allowing it to affect our defense. It took a toll on our energy levels. We have to be better at that. When you go 0-for-9 from three, and miss six free throws, that's not ideal. We can't do those things. I just don't think we were very sharp in the second half."

UP NEXT – Chattanooga at ETSU – Saturday, Jan. 25 – 4 p.m. ET – ESPN+ – Freedom Hall (Johnson City, Tenn.)

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