Wednesday, February 3
Cullowhee, N.C.
7:00 p.m.
Chattanooga
at
Western Carolina
A.J. Caldwell
Photo by: Dale Rutemeyer
PREVIEW: Mocs Start 3-Game Road Trip in the Smokies
2/2/2021 11:30:00 AM | Men's Basketball
A.J. Caldwell and the Chattanooga Mocs open a 3-game road swing Wednesday night at Western Carolina.
GAME NOTES | VIRTUAL BLUE OUT | ABOUT CHATTANOOGA BASKETBALL
CHATTANOOGA---The Chattanooga Mocs start a three-game road trip Wednesday night in Cullowhee at Western Carolina. The Mocs are coming off an 11-day break, while the Catamounts look to build on Monday afternoon's win over The Citadel.
This is the first game in 11 days due to positive COVID-19 test in tier 1 personnel postponing at ETSU (Jan. 27) and at Furman (Jan. 30) contests. The Johnson City game shifts to Feb. 6, originally the home date with the Bucs, and the new Roundhouse matchup on Mon., Feb. 15. Furman has not been rescheduled at this time.
Western had its own COVID issues early in conference play. That set up a busy circuit of late with Wednesday's matchup serving as its eighth game in 17 days.
UTC is 9-0 this season holding teams to less than 70 points, WCU is 0-5 scoring less than 70. They both have proven to be difficult to beat in close games with the good guys 9-4 in single-digit margin games, while the hosts are 4-0 mark in overtime endings.
There are four Mocs averaging in double figures - David Jean-Baptiste (17.7), Malachi Smith (16.1), Stefan Kenić (12.9) & Darius Banks (12.8). Western also features four averaging double digits paced by Mason Faulkner's 16. 1 ppg. Cory Hightower adds 13.6 ppg and a team-high 6.0 rpg. Xavier Cork (13.2 ppg) leads the SoCon in FG shooting (65.7%).
Chattanooga is 12-5 overall, 3-5 in the SoCon, while the Catamounts are 8-9, 1-7 in league play. Watch on ESPN+ or listen on WFLI 97.7 FM/1070 AM in Chattanooga as well as the TuneIn app.
Game 18: Chattanooga (12-5/3-5) at Western Carolina (8-9/1-7)
Feb. 3 | 7 p.m. | Ramsey Center (7,826)
MEDIA AVAILABILITY
TV: ESPN+. Daniel Hooker (PxP) & Jeff Bryson (analysis)
RADIO: WFLI 97.7 FM/1070 AM. Jim Reynolds is in his 41st year as the "Voice of the Mocs". The audio broadcast is also available on the TuneIn app.
VS. WESTERN CAROLINA
96th meeting | Record: 66-29 | Home: 37-6 | Away: 22-21 | Neutral: 7-2 | SoCon Regular Season: 54-26
Last Meeting: STORY | STATS | NOTES | QUOTES | PHOTOS
- One of three schools where Chattanooga has 20 or more road wins: The Citadel (30), Samford (23) & Western Carolina (22).
- 96th meeting, second most frequent opponent behind Samford (105).
- 66 series wins are tied for second most against all opponents with Samford (66-39) behind The Citadel (67-19).
- 81st Southern Conference regular season showdown is most of any opponent ahead of The Citadel (79) and Furman (79).
- 54 triumphs in SoCon regular season play is second to The Citadel (63).
COACHES
Chattanooga: Lamont Paris (Wooster '96) | UTC: 54-61 (4th season) | Career: Same | vs. WCU: 1-5
WCU: Mark Prosser (Marist '02) | WCU: 34-45 (3rd) | Career: 39-68 (4th) | vs. UTC: 3-1
3 NOTES TO KNOW
- 6-2 on the road so far. Six road wins is tied for 15th most in a season. The school record is 11 (2015-16). Won 10 of last 13 road contests. A win would be the 15th time with seven or more on the road. Previous 14: 1970-71 (8-3), 1972-73 (9-7), 1973-74 (7-5), 1974-75 (8-5), 1976-77 (9-5), 1981-82 (9-3), 1982-83 (7-1), 1984-85 (7-5), 1991-92 (9-5), 1992-93 (8-3), 2014-15 (7-7), 2015-16 (11-4), 2016-17 (7-7) & 2019-20 (7-8).
- Four games, four new season highs in points for Darius Banks: Mercer (10), Wofford (11), at Samford (12) & UNCG (18). By that math, he's due 19 next. Banks has multiple assists in three of four games.
- David Jean-Baptiste is one 3pt short of becoming fourth Moc to make 175 in a career. Eric Robertson '16 was the last to get there ranking third with 191. The all-time record of 243 is held by Stephen McDowell '09.
3 STATS TO KNOW
- 8th in the nation in free throw percentage (79.5%). That number leads the SoCon. The Mocs are shooting 81.1 percent on the road at the free throw line.
- A.J. Caldwell (42.9%) and Jamaal Walker (41.7%) lead the squad in 3pt shooting with Jean-Baptiste (39.8%) is close behind. Malachi Smith (44.8%) and DJB (43.8%) pace the group in league games.
- Smith is averaging 18.1 points and 10.9 rebounds per road contest. Caldwell (47.1%) and Jamaal Walker (44.8%) are shooting at a high rate from three on the road.
NEXT 3 OPPONENTS
Feb. 6: at ETSU, 4 p.m. | Current Record: 10-6/6-2 | Next Opp: at Mercer (Feb. 3)
Feb. 10: at Wofford, 7 p.m. | Current Record: 11-5/8-2 | Next Opp: VMI (Feb. 3)
Feb. 13: The Citadel, Noon | Current Record: 9-6/2-6 | Next Opp: UNCG (Feb. 3)
GoMocs.com is the official website of the Chattanooga Mocs. Buy officially licensed gear in our online store. The Mocs can also be followed on their official Facebook page or on Twitter. Find out how to join the UTC Mocs Club and support more than 300 student-athletes by clicking here.
CHATTANOOGA---The Chattanooga Mocs start a three-game road trip Wednesday night in Cullowhee at Western Carolina. The Mocs are coming off an 11-day break, while the Catamounts look to build on Monday afternoon's win over The Citadel.
This is the first game in 11 days due to positive COVID-19 test in tier 1 personnel postponing at ETSU (Jan. 27) and at Furman (Jan. 30) contests. The Johnson City game shifts to Feb. 6, originally the home date with the Bucs, and the new Roundhouse matchup on Mon., Feb. 15. Furman has not been rescheduled at this time.
Western had its own COVID issues early in conference play. That set up a busy circuit of late with Wednesday's matchup serving as its eighth game in 17 days.
UTC is 9-0 this season holding teams to less than 70 points, WCU is 0-5 scoring less than 70. They both have proven to be difficult to beat in close games with the good guys 9-4 in single-digit margin games, while the hosts are 4-0 mark in overtime endings.
There are four Mocs averaging in double figures - David Jean-Baptiste (17.7), Malachi Smith (16.1), Stefan Kenić (12.9) & Darius Banks (12.8). Western also features four averaging double digits paced by Mason Faulkner's 16. 1 ppg. Cory Hightower adds 13.6 ppg and a team-high 6.0 rpg. Xavier Cork (13.2 ppg) leads the SoCon in FG shooting (65.7%).
Chattanooga is 12-5 overall, 3-5 in the SoCon, while the Catamounts are 8-9, 1-7 in league play. Watch on ESPN+ or listen on WFLI 97.7 FM/1070 AM in Chattanooga as well as the TuneIn app.
Game 18: Chattanooga (12-5/3-5) at Western Carolina (8-9/1-7)
Feb. 3 | 7 p.m. | Ramsey Center (7,826)
MEDIA AVAILABILITY
TV: ESPN+. Daniel Hooker (PxP) & Jeff Bryson (analysis)
RADIO: WFLI 97.7 FM/1070 AM. Jim Reynolds is in his 41st year as the "Voice of the Mocs". The audio broadcast is also available on the TuneIn app.
VS. WESTERN CAROLINA
96th meeting | Record: 66-29 | Home: 37-6 | Away: 22-21 | Neutral: 7-2 | SoCon Regular Season: 54-26
Last Meeting: STORY | STATS | NOTES | QUOTES | PHOTOS
- One of three schools where Chattanooga has 20 or more road wins: The Citadel (30), Samford (23) & Western Carolina (22).
- 96th meeting, second most frequent opponent behind Samford (105).
- 66 series wins are tied for second most against all opponents with Samford (66-39) behind The Citadel (67-19).
- 81st Southern Conference regular season showdown is most of any opponent ahead of The Citadel (79) and Furman (79).
- 54 triumphs in SoCon regular season play is second to The Citadel (63).
COACHES
Chattanooga: Lamont Paris (Wooster '96) | UTC: 54-61 (4th season) | Career: Same | vs. WCU: 1-5
WCU: Mark Prosser (Marist '02) | WCU: 34-45 (3rd) | Career: 39-68 (4th) | vs. UTC: 3-1
3 NOTES TO KNOW
- 6-2 on the road so far. Six road wins is tied for 15th most in a season. The school record is 11 (2015-16). Won 10 of last 13 road contests. A win would be the 15th time with seven or more on the road. Previous 14: 1970-71 (8-3), 1972-73 (9-7), 1973-74 (7-5), 1974-75 (8-5), 1976-77 (9-5), 1981-82 (9-3), 1982-83 (7-1), 1984-85 (7-5), 1991-92 (9-5), 1992-93 (8-3), 2014-15 (7-7), 2015-16 (11-4), 2016-17 (7-7) & 2019-20 (7-8).
- Four games, four new season highs in points for Darius Banks: Mercer (10), Wofford (11), at Samford (12) & UNCG (18). By that math, he's due 19 next. Banks has multiple assists in three of four games.
- David Jean-Baptiste is one 3pt short of becoming fourth Moc to make 175 in a career. Eric Robertson '16 was the last to get there ranking third with 191. The all-time record of 243 is held by Stephen McDowell '09.
3 STATS TO KNOW
- 8th in the nation in free throw percentage (79.5%). That number leads the SoCon. The Mocs are shooting 81.1 percent on the road at the free throw line.
- A.J. Caldwell (42.9%) and Jamaal Walker (41.7%) lead the squad in 3pt shooting with Jean-Baptiste (39.8%) is close behind. Malachi Smith (44.8%) and DJB (43.8%) pace the group in league games.
- Smith is averaging 18.1 points and 10.9 rebounds per road contest. Caldwell (47.1%) and Jamaal Walker (44.8%) are shooting at a high rate from three on the road.
NEXT 3 OPPONENTS
Feb. 6: at ETSU, 4 p.m. | Current Record: 10-6/6-2 | Next Opp: at Mercer (Feb. 3)
Feb. 10: at Wofford, 7 p.m. | Current Record: 11-5/8-2 | Next Opp: VMI (Feb. 3)
Feb. 13: The Citadel, Noon | Current Record: 9-6/2-6 | Next Opp: UNCG (Feb. 3)
GoMocs.com is the official website of the Chattanooga Mocs. Buy officially licensed gear in our online store. The Mocs can also be followed on their official Facebook page or on Twitter. Find out how to join the UTC Mocs Club and support more than 300 student-athletes by clicking here.
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