UTC 80, LIPSCOMB 56
UTC (11-2)Ester 3-7 1-3 7, Tuoyo 2-5 0-1 4, Pryor 0-2 2-3 2, Robertson 6-11 1-1 18, McLean 3-8 4-4 10, Oldham 4-8 1-1 11, Matthews 0-0 0-0 0, Burroughs-Cook 4-8 0-0 8, Woods 0-0 2-2 2, Bates 0-0 0-0 0, Bran 0-1 0-0 0, Ethridge 5-8 7-9 18, White 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 27-60 18-24 80.LIPSCOMB (4-12)Pepper 3-9 0-1 7, Miller 0-2 0-0 0, Brammeier 5-6 3-4 13, Moran 1-7 1-2 4, Hampton 4-14 2-3 12, Butler 0-0 1-2 1, Duvall 2-3 0-0 5, Mathews 0-9 0-0 0, Smith 0-0 0-0 0, Korn 0-0 0-1 0, Wishon 4-8 4-4 14. Totals 19-58 11-17 56.Halftime—UTC, 40-29. 3-point goals—UTC 8-20 (Robertson 5-10, Oldham 2-3, Ethridge 1-2, Pryor 0-1, McLean 0-1, Burroughs-Cook 0-1, Bran 0-1, White 0-1); Lipscomb 7-30 (Wishon 2-4, Hampton 2-7, Duvall 1-2, Pepper 1-4, Moran 1-4, Miller 0-1, Mathews 0-8). Rebounds—UTC 37 (Oldham 9); Lipscomb 39 (Pepper 8). Assists—UTC 14 (McLean 4); Lipscomb 10 (Pepper 2, Miller 2, Wishon 2). Turnovers—UTC 8 (Tuoyo 2, Pryor 2, Burroughs-Cook 2); Lipscomb 14 (Moran 3). Blocks—UTC 3 (Tuoyo 2); Lipscomb 3 (Brammeier, Smith, Wishon). Steals—UTC 8 (Pryor 2, Oldham 2); Lipscomb 3 (Miller 2). Total fouls—UTC 18, Lipscomb 19. Fouled out—none. A—1,392.
NASHVILLE – Eventually, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga men’s basketball Mocs were going to have to hit the quality shots they were getting Tuesday evening in their game against Lipscomb.
That time wasn’t until late in the first half, but once they did, they really didn’t stop.
The Mocs (11-2) finished the first half on a 17-5 run, building an 11-point lead. Their success carried over into the second half as they cruised to an 80-56 win over the Bison in UTC’s final nonconference game of the season in front of 1,392 fans at Allen Arena.
UTC plays three of its first four Southern Conference games on the road, beginning at 1 p.m. Saturday at The Citadel (7-6) in Charleston, S.C.
Four players finished in double figures for the Mocs, led by Eric Robertson and Duke Ethridge with 18 points each. Dee Oldham, who prepped at nearby Wilson Central in Lebanon, had 11 points and nine rebounds with about 25-30 family and friends in attendance. Tre’ McLean had 10 points and four assists in the win.
Justin Tuoyo had two blocked shots, which gave him 132 for his career and tied him with Stanley Lawrence (1980-83) for the most all-time.
A bad accident on Interstate 24 caused the Mocs to arrive at the arena only about 30 minutes before tipoff. UTC coach Matt McCall said Lipscomb was ready to delay the start if necessary, but the Mocs arrived in time. That might have led to the slow start, though, as they missed seven of their first nine shots.
“That bus ride took us out of our routine, but we had to focus more because we didn’t get our normal routine,” McLean said. “I feel like we’re basketball players, so we shouldn’t miss those shots.”
The Bison led 24-23 after a layup by Brett Wishon with 4:15 to play in the first half, but the Mocs answered with the 17-5 run for a 40-29 lead at the break.
“Lipscomb played the first 16 minutes in the first half under zero duress,” McCall said. “We put no pressure on them. At the beginning of the game, they got whatever they wanted, but we started to play harder late in the half, which got us the 11-point lead.”
UTC only expanded on that advantage in the second half, as the Mocs hit 14 of their 30 shots while limiting the Bison to 29 percent shooting from the field.
Lipscomb, one of the nation’s most prolific 3-point-shooting teams, was only 7-for-30 from beyond the arc while the Mocs were 8-for-20.
The Bison were led by Wishon’s 14 points. George Brammeier had 13 while J.C. Hampton scored 12.
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him at twitter.com/genehenleytfp.