Lamont Paris doesn't typically put more emphasis on one game over another, but the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga men's basketball coach couldn't help but admit Wednesday's 72-59 home win over Wofford carries some serious weight.
For the second consecutive game, the Mocs came out sizzling and never let up, pushing their lead to 23 points by halftime and stretching it to as many as 30 early in the second half before the 2019 Southern Conference champions rallied to get within 11.
David Jean-Baptiste had 18 points to lead a trio of Mocs who scored in double figures, followed by Matt Ryan with 17 and Ramon Vila with 14. UTC (12-6, 3-2) continued its strong work on the boards with a 38-26 edge in rebounds, with Jean-Baptiste and Rod Johnson grabbing six each.
Trevor Stumpe's layup capped an 18-0 run by Wofford (11-7, 3-2) to cut the lead to 61-49 with 5:53 remaining, but Maurice Commander hit a 3-pointer at the shot-clock buzzer to break the streak. Moments later, Ryan and Jean-Baptiste hit consecutive deep balls to push the lead back to 18 and seal the win.
Nathan Hoover was the only Wofford player in double figures, finishing with 20 points.
WEDNESDAY'S STAR
Not an easy pick, but Jean-Baptiste had another all-around strong game for the Mocs, with the junior guard leading the team in scoring on 7-of-11 shooting and tying with Rod Johnson for the game high in rebounds with six. He also played a team-leading 34 minutes and was his usual pesky self on defense.
STANDOUT STAT
20. A superb defensive performance by the Mocs limited Wofford to that amount of points in the first half. The perimeter-oriented Terriers struggled while shooting only 8-of-22 in the first 20 minutes as every jumper was contested and every ball screen was switched to near perfection. The Mocs paid particular attention to Wofford sharpshooter Storm Murphy, who finished the game 1-for-7 overall and 0-for-4 from 3-point range.
TURNING POINT
In a nearly perfect first half for UTC, the key run was a 21-6 spurt that started with 8:28 left in the half and the Mocs up just eight. Jean-Baptiste started it with a 3-pointer and added a pair of layups, and Jonathan Scott had a pair of treys while pushing the lead to 41-18. The Terriers rallied midway through the second half but never got their deficit below 10 points.
WHAT IT MEANS
Sure, this isn't Wofford of last season, but the win is significant within the SoCon and especially in the UTC locker room. Paris loves to have his team "Mike Tyson" an opponent with big punches early, and that's just what the Mocs have done in home wins over Samford and now Wofford. As he said after Wednesday's big win, the train is going in the right direction.
QUOTABLE
Paris on the significance of the win: "In some ways it is a bit more significant. Wofford is a team that has in recent history been at the top of the conference. They still have plenty of guys on this team from last year. It's a win against a really good team. We haven't won some of these games in the past two years."
Vila on holding off Wofford's late run: "We have a mature team. Most of us are upperclassmen. Last year when a team had a run, we would just sort of give up and let them win. This year we fight to the end. That's the biggest difference to me in what we are doing."
Jean-Baptiste on UTC's defense: "It's just the way we've been practicing lately. Everybody has been focusing on that end. It's fun to watch, to see everyone talking defense and focusing on it. It's a huge improvement this year."
Contact Lindsey Young at lyoung@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6296. Follow him on Twitter @youngsports22.