Box Score - Notes/Quotes

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (January 24, 2026) – The Chattanooga Mocs men's basketball team struggled to score and couldn't battle its way out of foul trouble during a 75-64 road loss at Samford during Southern Conference action on Saturday afternoon inside the Pete Hanna Center in Birmingham, Ala.
 
Chattanooga drops to 9-12 overall and 3-5 inside SoCon play after suffering its second-straight defeat. Samford snapped a four-game skid and improved to 10-11 overall and a similar 3-5 mark inside league action.

Full game details, notes, quotes and more are below.

Quick Records
Chattanooga: 9-12, 3-5 SoCon
Samford: 10-11, 3-5 SoCon

Series History
Meeting: 116th | UTC leads 70-46 (H: 43-15; A: 24-31; N: 3-0)
*UTC now leads 22-14 in SoCon regular season meetings
 
Dan Earl, Head Coach
Overall (11th): 150-189
at Chattanooga (4th): 77-50, 37-25 SoCon
vs. Samford: 7-19 (H: 4-7; A: 1-10; N: 2-2)

Game Breakdown
Chattanooga found a spark from deep in the early stages with five made triples on its first six made shots, leading to an early 18-13 lead (10:28). Samford responded with a deep attack of their own as threes on three-straight possessions capped off an 11-0 scoring run that put the hosts ahead 24-18 (7:10).
 
Five quick points from Collin Mulholland and a pair of Billy Smith free throws accounted for seven unanswered points and allowed UTC to regain the lead, 25-24, with 4:26 left in the half. After a brief Samford scoring spurt, the Mocs scored the final five points of the opening frame to tie things at 32-32 heading into the break.
 
The first half of action featured seven lead changes and three ties while the two teams combined to make 13 threes on its 22 made field goals. In the first 20 minutes, Samford led for 9:47 while UTC led for 8:55 with no lead for either side growing outside of a two-possession difference.
 
Josh Bowman finished a wide-open dunk to cap off an 8-2 scoring run to open the second half, giving the Mocs a 40-34 lead with 17:26 remaining. After building its six-point lead, UTC went scoreless for more than five minutes as Samford scored eight-straight to jump back ahead 42-40 at the 13:21 mark.
 
Teddy Washington Jr. and Jordan Frison finished contested left-handed layups on consecutive possessions to give the Mocs a 48-45 (9:10) advantage and force Samford into a timeout. Bulldogs answered with a 10-2 scoring run to pull back in front by five before extending the advantage to a game-high eight, 62-54 (4:46), with the help of nine free throws during the span.
 
The closest the Mocs would get to the Bulldogs was five, 66-61, after Tate Darner finished at the rim through traffic with 2:29 left. Samford closed the game out from the free-throw line down the stretch, ultimately leading by as many as 14 before capping off the 75-64 victory.

Inside the Box Score
· G Brennan Watkins posted 10 points on 3-of-6 FG shooting… went 3-of-5 from 3FG… three-straight games with three or more 3FGM… four-straight with two or more… 11-of-16 (68.8%) from 3FG over past three games.
 
· G Jordan Frison led the team in scoring with 11 points on 4-of-8 FG shooting… added three assists and two rebounds… one of six Mocs who battled foul trouble (4+).

3 Notes to Know
· Chattanooga shot 20-of-48 (41.7%) from the floor in total… 10-of-26 (38.5%) from 3FG… went 14-of-21 (66.7%) from the FT line… the 20 FGM marked the fewest since 15 FGM against USC in last year's season opener on November 4, 2024… fewest against a SoCon opponent since 20 FGM against Western Carolina on March 2, 2024.
 
· Chattanooga turned the ball over just seven times during the defeat… only forced four Samford turnovers… trailed 11-0 in points off turnovers… Bulldogs entered the contest ranked in the top 10 across DI in fewest turnovers per game.
 
· Chattanooga suffered a -3 (37-34) disadvantage in the rebounding category… all 12 losses this season have occurred when being out-rebounded… Samford led in second-chance points 10-7… UTC has been outscored 28-10 in second-chance points over the past two games.

Postgame Quotes
Dan Earl's opening thoughts after 75-64 loss at Samford.
"It was a pretty disappointing basketball game. I thought the biggest disappointment was when the game got tough, we didn't. We didn't play our best basketball, and that's a problem, but the lack of response and attention to detail when we needed it most was the real problem. Losing guys on defense, not paying attention to the scout, and fouling without defending really hurt us. It's the things you can control."

Up Next | Schedule
Chattanooga gets an extra day of recovery as the squad turns its attention to a Thursday night home battle against Wofford inside McKenzie Arena. Tip-off is slated for 6 p.m. (ET) and will be carried live as the 'SoCon Game of the Week' on Nexstar/WFLI-TV and ESPN+. Tickets can be purchased at the schedule link above.

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