UTC’s Donovann Toatley (5) attempts to break Eastern Kentucky’s press as he dribbles past JacQuess Hobbs during Saturday night’s game at McKenzie Arena.A strong first-half performance on both ends of the court turned sour in the second half for the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga men’s basketball team, which squandered a nine-point halftime lead and lost 81-78 to Eastern Kentucky University in the Mocs’ home opener Saturday night at McKenzie Arena.
EKU (1-1) was led by senior Nick Mayo, who scored 35 of his 40 points in the second half and added 12 rebounds to break the Mocs’ hearts after they led by 13 points in the opening period.
“We knew what he could do, and we addressed the fact that he’s about to break the school record in scoring and he’s a first-team all-league player for three years in a row,” UTC coach Lamont Paris said. “We talked about sending help and paying attention, and we did not do a good job with that at all. That was a disappointment.”
The Mocs (1-1) withstood the Colonels’ swarming pressure early, turning those breaks into easy buckets and getting Mayo into early foul trouble. But once he got going, the Colonels made sure he got the ball often.
“At halftime, we all put an emphasis on getting going, and I made some shots and got hot,” Mayo said. “My teammates saw it, my coach saw it, and I was just able to get the looks that I wanted.”