CHATTANOOGA (November 22, 2025) – The Chattanooga Mocs men's basketball team finally returned home to McKenzie Arena and put together a dominating effort on both sides of the floor during a 71-57 victory over North Alabama in the final game of the ASUN/SoCon Challenge on Saturday afternoon.
 
Following the win, Chattanooga (3-3) has now won back-to-back games by double digits over last year's regular season conference champions from the ASUN (UNA) and MEAC (SC State). The 57 points allowed to North Alabama (2-4) marked the fewest to a DI non-conference opponent since November 26, 2023 (W, 72-56 vs. SEMO).
 
Quick Records/Series
Chattanooga: 3-3 | North Alabama: 2-4
Series: 25^th all-time meeting in the series… first time since 1970 and first in both DI eras… UTC is now 18-7 all-time.
 
Dan Earl, Head Coach
Chattanooga (4): 71-41 | Overall (11): 144-180
 
Details: Stats | Notes | Quotes
 
Breakdown – First Half
- North Alabama claimed an early 12-9 lead at the 11:34 mark of the opening half after a slow offensive start from both sides.
- Brennan Watkins was fouled on a three-point attempt and knocked down all three free throws to give Chattanooga it's first lead, 14-13, with 8:07 on the board.
- Sebastian Hartmann connected on his first triple to push the lead to five, 20-15 (6:42), before UNA cut its deficit to one, 23-22, with exactly 2:00 left in the half.
- Chattanooga ended the half on a 10-4 scoring run, highlighted by a Jordan Frison drive and lay-in at the buzzer, and claimed a 33-26 lead at the break.
 
Breakdown – Second Half
- Billy Smith knocked down four triples in the early stages of the second half before Hartmann joined with a triple of his own to give Chattanooga 52-38 lead with an even 12:00 left in the game.
- The Mocs continued to keep a safe distance from the Lions as the lead grew to as many as 18, 59-41 (9:21), after Jordan Frison converted on a contested layup.
- UTC kept a double-digit lead for the remainder of the contest as UNA could only pull within 11, 65-54 (4:43), before the ultimate 71-57 final.
 
Inside the UTC Box Score
Billy Smith (G) – 18 pts (6-10 3FG); 5 reb; 2 ast
Sebastian Hartmann (F) – 11 pts (4-8 FG; 3-5 3FG); 6 reb; 2 stl
Tate Darner (G) – 10 pts (3-6 FG)
Teddy Washington (G) – 10 reb; ast; stl

Team: 25-56 FG (.446); 11-33 3FG (.333); 10-14 FT (.714); +8 REB (37-29)
 
3 Notes to Know | More
- Chattanooga's 57 points allowed to North Alabama were the fewest against a DI opponent since 57 (W, 75-57) against Wofford in the SoCon Quarterfinals back on March 9, 2024... fewest against a DI non-conference opponent since 56 against SEMO on November 26, 2023.
- Billy Smith finished with a game-high 18 points… all 10 FGA came from three… finished 6-of-10 3FG… tied career-high for 3FGM in a single game… third time doing so… last came at Bellarmine against Ball State on 12/14/24.
- Chattanooga has now posted 37-straight games with a positive A/TO ratio… finished with 14 assists and 12 turnovers tonight… entered the week ranked 45^th in NCAA DI in A/TO ratio (1.69)… finished 5^th in the country last season at 1.71.

Quotable | Watch Presser
Head coach Dan Earl's opening thoughts after 71-57 win over North Alabama.
"It was definitely another positive step in the process, especially on both sides of the ball, but I thought we've done a much better job on the defensive end over the past two games. I was proud of the guys for really competing tonight. You can see in the first half that we missed a ton of shots and we stuck with it, kept shooting the open ones, and didn't force anything. We also got the ball down low and made some good decisions on when to get the ball to the basket. So overall, it was a good win and a step in the right direction."

Up Next | Tickets
Chattanooga continues its homestand and will celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday with the 2025 Coke Zero Sugar Classic next Friday through Sunday inside McKenzie Arena. The Mocs will host Tennessee Wesleyan on Friday before wrapping up the event against Tennessee State on Sunday. Both tip times are slated for 2 p.m.

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