ETSU Edges UNCG Men’s Basketball, 66-65, in Regular Season Finale
JOHNSON CITY, N.C. – The UNC Greensboro (UNCG) men’s basketball team fell to ETSU Saturday evening, 66-65, in The Southern Conference (SoCon) regular season finale.
Keyshaun Langley led the game with 25 points, while Donovan Atwell was second on the team with 18 points. Jalen Breath dominated the boards with 10 rebounds.
Attached photo of Keyshaun Langley (credit Denise Archetto)
HOW IT HAPPENED
ETSU got out to a 6-0 start to the game, as UNCG went on a 10-2 run claiming the advantage, 10-8. The Bucs went up 10, 28-18, following a 9-3 run in three minutes and 15 seconds. The two teams traded baskets the rest of the half, as ETSU went to the locker room with a nine-point lead, 32-23.
ETSU would stay ahead for most of the second half, climbing to another 10-point lead less than three minutes into the half, 43-33. The Spartans cut the deficit to six, 44-38, but the Bucs prevailed with another double-figure advantage, 48-38. The score continued to toggle before the Spartans went on a 13-4 run tying the game for the first time, 58-58. UNCG then took their first advantage since the first half with the Spartans’ third-straight three pointer, 61-58. ETSU drained its fifth three pointer of the game to tie the game at 61. UNCG went up four, 65-61, but ETSU came out on top, 66-65, with a three pointer and a jumper in the final minute of play for the win.
BY THE NUMBERS
This was Keyshaun’s seventh game with 20 or more points.
This was Atwell’s 15th game scoring double figures.
This was Breath’s third game this season with 10 or more rebounds.
Tim Ceaser had eight rebounds and two blocks, bringing his career total for blocks to 98.
This was Kobe’s 20th game with five or more assists. He tallied seven against the Bucs.
UNCG held the slight advantage in three pointers, shooting 37.9-percent, to ETSU’s 35.3-percent.
The Spartans scored 26 points off turnovers, while the Bucs had 18.
UNCG had 15 points off of second chances, as ETSU tallied six points.
RECORDS
UNCG: 21-10, 12-6 SoCon
ETSU: 16-15, 8-10 SoCon
UP NEXT
UNCG will learn its fate for the 2024 SoCon Tournament. The tournament is set to take place in Asheville, North Carolina at Harrah’s Cherokee Center from Friday, March 8 to Monday, March 11.
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Courtesy of Denise Archetto
Assistant Athletic Director For Strategic Communications
UNC Greensboro
UNCG Men’s Basketball Earns No. 2 Seed in 2024 SoCon Tournament
SoCon Basketball Tournament Central
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The UNC Greensboro (UNCG) men’s basketball team will enter the 2024 Southern Conference (SoCon) Men’s Basketball Tournament as the No. 2 seed. The Tournament will take place in Asheville, North Carolina at Harrah’s Cherokee Center.
The Spartans are set to play in a quarterfinal matchup on Saturday, March 9 at 2:30 p.m. against the winner of No. 7 ETSU and No. 10 VMI on ESPN+ and Nexstar affiliates.
The Bucs and Keydets face each other on Friday, March 8 at 7:30 p.m. on ESPN+.
The tournament begins Friday, March 8, with a pair of first-round games. Four quarterfinal games follow on Saturday, March 9, with the semifinals on Sunday, March 10, and the title game on Monday, March 11, at 7 p.m. The semifinals will air on ESPNU, while Monday’s championship game will air live on ESPN or ESPN2. The other six games will air on ESPN+, with Saturday’s quarterfinals also appearing on select Nexstar affiliates.
Samford locked up its first outright title and No. 1 seed since joining the SoCon in 2008 with an 87-71 win against ETSU on Feb. 24. The Bulldogs’ win over the Buccaneers to clinch the regular-season crown was the team’s 25th victory of the season, which established a new program record for wins in a season. Samford enters postseason play with a 26-5 overall record and a 15-3 mark in SoCon play, giving the Bulldogs 15 wins in conference play for the second straight season. Three wins in Asheville will give Samford its first SoCon Tournament title.
Samford opens play Saturday, March 9, at noon, where it will face either No. 8 seed Mercer or No. 9 seed The Citadel, who will square off in the first round on Friday at 5 p.m.
Friday’s second contest will see No. 7 seed ETSU (16-15, 8-10) take on No. 10 seed VMI (4-27, 1-17) at 7: 30 p.m. The winner of that contest will advance to face No. 2 seed UNCG on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. The Spartans, who turned in their second straight 20-win season at 21-10 overall and 12-6 in SoCon play, split with their games during the season with ETSU and won both games versus VMI. UNCG will be looking for its first conference tournament title since 2021.
Saturday’s third game will see No. 3 seed Chattanooga (20-11, 12-6) take on No. 6 seed Wofford (17-14, 10-8) at 6 p.m. No. 4 seed Western Carolina (22-9, 11-7), who are the fourth seed for the second season in a row, will take on No. 5 seed Furman (16-15, 10-8), the defending tournament champions, in the final quarterfinal game on Saturday at 8:30 p.m.
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2024 Ingles Southern Conference Men’s Basketball Championship
Friday, March 8 (ESPN+)
Game 1 – (8) Mercer vs. (9) The Citadel, 5 p.m.
Game 2 – (7) ETSU vs. (10) VMI, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, March 9 (ESPN+/Nexstar)
Game 3 – (1) Samford vs. Game 1 winner, 12 p.m.
Game 4 – (2) UNCG vs. Game 2 winner, 2:30 p.m.
Game 5 – (3) Chattanooga vs. (6) Wofford, 6 p.m.
Game 6 – (4) Western Carolina vs. (5) Furman, 8:30 p.m.
Sunday, March 10 (ESPNU)
Game 7 – Game 3 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 4 p.m.
Game 8 – Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner, 6:30 p.m.
Monday, March 11 (ESPN or ESPN2)
Championship game, 7 p.m.
Courtesy of Denise Archetto
Assistant Athletic Director For Strategic Communications
UNC Greensboro