SPARTANBURG, S.C. — Once again, coach Wes Moore wiped his brow and breathed a sigh of relief.
His University of Tennessee at Chattanooga women’s basketball team escaped with a 78-72 Southern Conference win at Wofford on Monday.
The first-place Lady Mocs (15-6, 10-2) have won 10 straight games, and six of them have been by six points or less.
“I told them that they won’t be around to enjoy my retirement, but they’re helping me get there sooner,” Moore joked. “We’ve had a bunch of these this year. We are fortunate that kids made plays down the stretch.”
Senior Jenaya Wade-Fray led UTC with 19 points, freshman Michelle Davis scored 16 and freshman Kayla Christopher had 15. Reigning SoCon player of the year Shanara Hollinquest scored 11 points and topped the 1,500-point barrier for her college career.
“We’re used to tight games,” Wade-Fray said. “Most of the games, we play together and find a way to win. I wouldn’t say lucky — OK, I guess a little bit.”
Junior Mahagony Williams led the Terriers with 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting, and Kristin Bradley added 15 points, all on second-half 3-pointers.
“I thought we competed for the full 40 minutes, and I thought we answered their runs,” Wofford coach Edgar Farmer Jr. said. “I felt like we were right there.
“That’s the No. 1 team in our league, and we were right there with them.”
Wofford led by six early in the first half and took a 32-31 lead into halftime even though the Lady Mocs led by eight with nine minutes to go in the half. UTC used a 16-4 run to build a 58-47 lead with 8:51 to go in the game, but Bradley hit three straight 3s and Williams added another bucket during an 11-2 Wofford run.
“It was a nail-biter,” Davis said. “It was touch-and-go during the whole game. The last few games it’s gone down to the buzzer.”
Twice in the final four minutes the Terriers pulled within four, but both times a layup rimmed out.
“We’re not having 20-point wins like we used to,” said Moore, whose program is riding a 10-year run of conference championships. “Everything comes tough for this team, and today was no different.”