Rutherford Times

The Chattanooga Mocs men's basketball team was held without a field goal for over seven minutes down the stretch in the second half and eventually lost its large second-half lead in a 75-74 loss to Samford in Southern Conference action on Saturday. 

Following the loss, Chattanooga falls to 11-8 overall this season and 3-3 inside SoCon action. Samford remains unbeaten in league play this year at 6-0 and ups its overall mark to 12-8.
 
Chattanooga led by 14, 45-31, at the break and as much as 19, 55-36 (14:48), in the second half before Samford clawed its way back into the contest. The Mocs were held without a field goal for seven-plus minutes starting at the 7:34 mark of the second half.
 
"That was a tough one, obviously. In many ways, we played very well in the first half. And then we felt an intangible shift in the second half," said head coach Dan Earl.
 
"We have to be tougher with the basketball and not turn it over. We can't be as passive and have to keep attacking. Give credit to Samford, they were tough and started making shots. They started pressing with more aggression and we couldn't handle it."
 
Jake Stephens led the team in scoring with 19 points while adding in seven rebounds, three assists and three blocks. His game-winning three attempt at the buzzer hit the front iron as he finished the contest 2-of-8 from deep.
 
Jamal Johnson posted 16 points and six rebounds in his return home to Birmingham. Dalvin White (13) and Khristion Courseault (12) both reached double figures in scoring to help aid the Mocs offense.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Samford and Chattanooga exchanged early scoring as the hosts claimed a 10-9 lead less than four minutes in at the 16:13 mark. The Mocs held an early 19-16 lead with 11:38 left in the opening half after a Johnson three at the top of the key.
 
UTC used a lethal attack from behind the arc over the next few minutes and saw a four-point play from Johnson followed by a triple from White to help build a 35-21 (5:15) lead. The guests continued to put together an efficient opening half on both sides of the ball and claimed a 45-31 lead at the break.
 
A physical start to the second half saw Samford close the gap to 14, 48-34 (19:04), before the deficit shrunk to 11, 57-46 (11:40), which forced a Chattanooga timeout. The run continued for the home team as the unbeaten Bulldogs pulled within two, 62-60 (7:54).
 
From that point, Chattanooga was held without a field goal for the game's final seven minutes before a Randy Brady slam gave the Mocs a late 74-73 lead with just 17 seconds left. UTC was called for a foul on the other end as Samford converted a pair of free throws to pull ahead 75-74 with just 4.9 seconds left.
 
With no timeouts, Chattanooga pushed the ball and found Stephens the top of the key on the potential game-winning possession. His deep three was on line, but fell just short off the front iron as time expired, giving the Bulldogs the 75-74 come-from-behind victory.

RECORDS/SERIES – Chattanooga 11-8, 3-3 SoCon · Samford 12-7, 6-0 SoCon · Series: Chattanooga now leads the series 67-41.

NOTES TO KNOW
- Chattanooga held the lead for over 30 minutes (30:52)… Samford led for just 4:31… 12 lead changes and 11 ties throughout the contest.
 
- Chattanooga was held without a FG for over 7-plus minutes late in the second half… Randy Brady's dunk to take the lead with 0:17 seconds left broke the drought. 

QUOTES

Dan Earl on moving forward.

"You have to have a short memory. You're angry right now and you try to take it out on the next opponent. In basketball, the next one comes quick. We'll sit on the bus and think about things, how you can do things better, individually, as a coaching staff, myself. We'll watch the film and try to get better. Things like that happen. It's a long season and we'll keep plugging away." 

Original source can be found here