CHATTANOOGA (November 30, 2025) – The Chattanooga Mocs men's basketball team saw its nine-game home win streak snapped during a 70-64 defeat to in-state foe Tennessee State during the final day of the 2025 Coke Zero Sugar Classic held inside McKenzie Arena on Sunday afternoon.
Chattanooga (4-4) not only has its lengthy home win-streak snapped at nine but also sees its three-game win streak halted after the loss to Tennessee State (5-3). The Mocs entered the day having won its last six matchups against the Tigers with its last loss coming on December 5, 1994 in Nashville before today.
Quick Records/Series
Chattanooga: 4-4 | Tennessee State: 5-3
Series: 37th all-time meeting in the series… UTC leads the series 23-14… Mocs won the last six in the series before today's loss.
Dan Earl, Head Coach
Chattanooga (4): 72-42 | Overall (11): 145-181
Details: Stats |
Notes |
Quotes
Game Breakdown
- Tennessee State raced out of the gates with a quick 7-0 lead (16:45) before extending the lead to double digits, 19-8, with 11:49 left in the opening half.
- Chattanooga cut its deficit to six, 27-21 (7:24), after
Sean Cusano successfully converted an and-one with a strong finish at the rim.
- The Tigers once again built a double-digit lead, 34-23 (4:55), following a 7-2 scoring run over the next two-plus minutes.
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Jordan Frison drove the length off the court and found
Tate Darner in the corner to beat the halftime buzzer with a triple, sending the Mocs into the break down nine, 42-33.
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Brennan Watkins knocked down a three and
Billy Smith converted on a contested layup to trim the deficit to six, 48-42, as TSU responded once again with five quick points to build back a 53-42 advantage.
- Highlighted by back-to-back threes from Watkins and Darner, Chattanooga used a 10-2 scoring run to trim the difference to three, 55-52 (8:35), and force TSU into a timeout.
- Darner and Smith found the bottom of the net from deep in consecutive possessions to bring the Mocs within two, 66-64, with 30 seconds left. TSU closed the game out with a fastbreak dunk and a pair of free throws to seal the deal down the stretch.
Inside the Stats | Box Score
G
Tate Darner: 16 pts (6-10 FG; 3-5 3PT), 4 reb
G
Billy Smith: 11 pts (4-11 FG; 3-10 3PT), 3 reb, 2 ast
F
Sebastian Hartmann: 9 pts, 8 reb, stl
Team: 36.2% FG (21-58); 28.6% 3FG (10-35); 85.7% FT (12-14); 31 rebounds (-8 margin)
3 Notes to Know | More
- Chattanooga had its nine-game home winning streak snapped after the defeat… entered the day with the 10
th longest active home win streak (by number) in DI… now 3-1 at home this season.
- Chattanooga suffered its first loss to Tennessee State since December 5, 1994… Mocs had won the last six matchups in the series before today's result… TSU earned its first win the Roundhouse since a 102-98 victory on December 8, 1989.
- Chattanooga shot a season-low 36.2% (21-58) from the floor… also a season-low mark from 3PT (28.6%; 10-35)… season-low assist total (12)… turned over TSU only eight times which ties a season low… Tigers entered the game averaging 16.2 TO/GM.
Quotable | Watch Postgame Presser
Sebastian Hartmann on filling the role inside - "At the end of the day, we have guys down. And I tend to think of myself as a physical player, so if I can help with that, that's something I'm going to do at the end of the day. I won't say that it's probably my favorite position, but whatever helps us in the moment, I'm willing to do."
Up Next | Tickets
Chattanooga continues its lengthy homestand next Saturday, December 6, with a matchup against defending OVC regular season champion SEMO inside McKenzie Arena. Tip-off is set for 4:30 p.m. (ET) on ESPN+ and Nexstar/WFLI-TV Chattanooga as part of the SoCon Game of the Week TV package.
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