CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – Davidson’s men’s basketball team lost to UNC-Greensboro, 71-64, in the first round of the Southern Conference tournament Friday afternoon.
Greensboro, which fell to Davidson at Belk Arena last weekend, never trailed in Friday’s first-round tournament game. Trevis Simpson had 15 points and 10 rebounds and two other Spartans also hit double figures as UNCG advanced to a round 2 matchup against Western Carolina. Greensboro (7-23 overall, 7-12 in the league) meets North No. 1 Western Carolina at 2 p.m. Saturday at McKenzie Arena.
The loss ended the Wildcats’ season, with a record of 17-14 overall, 10-9 in the league. The Cats were seeded No. 4 in the South Division while Greensboro, whom Davidson beat last weekend, was seeded No. 5 in the North.
Poor shooting was the story for Davidson. The Spartans held the Cats to just 24 percent shooting (18-of-75). The Cats hit eight out of 34 three-point attempts.
Brendan McKillop led Davidson with 14 points, while JP Kuhlman had 11. De’Mon Brooks score nine and had 10 rebounds, and Nik Cochran had nine points and three assists.
The Spartans raced out to an 11-1 lead in the first three minutes of the contest, powered by a pair of Brandon Evans three-pointers.
UNCG stretched its lead back out to 10 points on two occasions and took a 32-24 advantage into the locker room.
Trailing by eight at halftime, Davidson sliced the Spartans’ advantage to six with a Tom Droney layup at the 7:36 mark, but that was as close as they would get.
The Spartans held Davidson to 16 percent shooting (6-of-37) in the opening frame, but the Wildcats were able to remain within striking distance thanks to 17 offensive rebounds. Davidson pulled down 28 offensive caroms for the game.
Evans contributed 12 points for the Spartans while point guard Kyle Randall added 11 points, seven rebounds and six assists.
GAME NOTES: Brendan McKillop finished his career with 813 points and 210 3-pointers, good for fourth in the school career record books. … The Wildcats entered the game winners of their last nine of 10 … Davidson returns all but two players to the 2011-12 team, including eight of its top-9 scorers. … The 24 percent from the floor was a school record for lowest field goal percentage, passing a 25 percent mark set against The Citadel in Belk Arena in 2009. … The Cats fall to 2-3 in SoCon tourney games in McKenzie Arena.
– Staff report, with help from Jason Yaman, Southern Conference Media Relations, and Marc Gignac, Davidson College Sports Information.
RELATED LINKS
March 4, 2011, SoConSports.com game report, “UNCG eliminates Davidson, 71-64.”
March 4, 2011, DavidsonWildcats.com game report.
Download the box score (PDF) from Friday’s game, CLICK HERE>
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