Riding a disappointing two-game losing streak, the Elon University Phoenix men’s basketball team headed to Cullowhee, North Carolina on Monday night and defeated the Western Carolina University Catamounts, 80-67. The contest was a back-and-forth affair until Elon pulled away late to hand the Catamounts their first Southern Conference loss.
Western Carolina jumped out to a 4-0 lead, but could not build on their quick start as Elon’s offense suddenly got hot. Senior guard Josh Bonney, playing in place of an injured Austin Hamilton, hit a three-pointer with 12:24 to play in the first half to give the Phoenix a 13-10 lead, their first of the contest.
Elon led by as much as seven in the first period of play, with the first of such leads coming after freshman center Tony Sabato nailed a jumper with 10:09 to play, capping a 12-2 Elon run.
Western Carolina, proving they were ready to fight for their record, quickly rallied, retaking the lead with 3:39 remaining in the half off of a three-pointer from redshirt junior guard Trey Sumler.
Sumler’s free throw shooting helped the Catamounts to a 31-27 halftime lead, one they would soon relinquish.
Much like Saturday’s contest at Appalachian State University that Elon lost 80-70, the beginning of the second half was back-and-forth. A Sumler three 45 seconds into the half gave WCU its largest lead at six, but a Lucas Troutman layup with 15:59 remaining tied the game at 39. The teams swapped baskets and turnovers until a Ryan Winters jumper with 11:04 remaining gave the maroon and gold a 49-48 lead, one they would never give up.
In fact, Elon went on a 15-0 run that took the game from 48-47 all the way to 62-48. Elon led by at least nine the rest of the way, and was able to salvage one game from its two-game road swing.
Troutman’s 20 points paced Elon, who also got 16 from Jack Isenbarger, 15 from Sebastian Koch, and 12 from Ryley Beaumont. In addition, Winters, Bonney, Samson, and Kevin Blake got into the scoring column for the Phoenix.
Western Carolina was led by Sumler’s 32 points, as freshman guard Mike Brown was the only other player in double figures with ten points.
With the win, Elon improves to 9-7, 2-2 in the SoCon, and WCU drops to 7-10, 4-1 in the conference. Elon returns home Thursday to face Furman, tip time is set for 7 p.m.