2008 Woodie Awards
Men's basketball holds off Appalachian
Spartans earn first win over a Division I opponent since Dec. 11
Brad Howell
Issue date: 1/24/06 Section: Sports
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UNCG (9-10, 2-3 SoCon) had no answer defensively against the Catamounts, who shot 58.5 percent from the field, including 59.1 percent from 3-point range. As good as Western was collectively, Kyle Greathouse was a one-man wrecking crew. The junior guard set career-highs in both points (29) and three-point makes (7). David Berghoefer was also a force for the Catamounts, scoring 23 points on 10-of-15 shooting.
"They came in and showed us how to win on the road by shooting the ball exceptionally well," said Spartan coach Mike Dement. "Greathouse had a great game and we just couldn't get to him. But 76 points is plenty of points, so we have to do a better job defending."
Ricky Hickman led the Spartans with a season-high 26 points, shooting 8-for-16 from the field. Kyle Hines chipped in 19 points to go along with eight rebounds. An unusual statistic for the sophomore forward however, was the nine turnovers he committed, a career-high. "I was forcing it too much," said Hines of his turnover woes. "I was trying too hard to make something happen. They did a good job, but I was forcing it some tonight."
UNCG raced out to a 16-9 lead seven minutes into the action, but Western fought back to tie things up at 21-all with 10:48 to go in the first half.
The Spartans wouldn't regain the lead until Dwayne Johnson's three-pointer with 15 minutes to go gave UNCG a 46-44 advantage. The lead was short-lived however, as Greathouse promptly nailed a trey to put the Catamounts up one. Western's lead swelled to as much as 11 points, but Hickman's three with 39 seconds to go shrank the deficit to five, 81-76. Greathouse continued his career night by sinking five foul shots in the final 36 seconds to seal the win, ending UNCG's seven-game winning streak at Fleming Gym.
Heading into the Appalachian game, the Spartans had dropped six of their last seven contests. In the midst of a season-long three-game home stand, UNCG was eager to get a "W".
The Spartans clamped down defensively in the final minutes, spoiling Appalachian State's final possession when Hines picked off the long inbounds pass to escape with the narrow victory.
Holding onto a slim three-point lead with under a minute to go, Hickman missed a 3-pointer to give the Mountaineers a chance to tie the game. ASU's backcourt duo of Demetrius Scott and D.J. Thompson went for 24 and 22 points, respectively, during the game. With UNCG allowing its last eight opponents to shoot 47 percent from long range, defending Apps two-headed monster was essential. Unfortunately for the Spartans, the defense broke down, giving Thompson a wide-open look from the top of the key. Nevertheless, the shot rimmed out and Hines grabbed the board. The sophomore got hacked, but made only one of two shots from the line.
