ASHEVILLE, N.C. (March 4, 2022) – Despite erasing a 10-point second-half deficit and taking a two-point lead with 14 seconds remaining, the ETSU men’s basketball team couldn’t hold on and keep its season alive.

Following an old-fashioned three-point play by Mohab Yasser (Giza, Egypt), the Citadel was able to draw a foul on the inbounds play, sending David Maynard to the line for the one-and-one. Maynard made both attempts to tie the game at 69 – and after Ty Brewer’s (Meridian, Miss.) open look at a three didn’t drop – the Bucs and Bulldogs were forced to play overtime.

ETSU, playing shorthanded as David Sloan (Louisville, Ky.) fouled out on the inbounds pass with 13 seconds remaining in regulation, saw The Citadel score the first six points in overtime, and hold on for an 84-76 win in the Friday’s opening round of the Southern Conference Tournament inside Harrah’s Cherokee Center Asheville.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• The Bucs, who suffered their first-ever loss to The Citadel in SoCon postseason play (7-1), ended their season with an overall record of 15-17. The eighth-seeded Buccaneers also dropped their first game of the SoCon Tournament since falling to Western Carolina in the 2015 quarterfinals.
• In a game that saw 11 ties and nine lead changes, the Bulldogs led for over 33 minutes, while ETSU held the lead for five minutes and one second.
• For the game, ETSU shot 42 percent from the field (32-76), but went 19 percent from long distance (5-27) and 58 percent at the free throw line (7-12).
• The Bulldogs, seeded ninth in the tournament, finished 45 percent from the field (27-60) and 39 percent from beyond the arc (9-23). The Citadel, who entered the night as the worst free throw shooting team in the league, hit 21 of its 28 attempts for a 75 percent clip. Eleven of those makes came in the overtime stanza.
• ETSU won the battle of the boards by one, 42-41, and turned 13 offensive rebounds into 16 second chance points.
• The Bucs also finished plus-18 in the paint, 48-30.
• ETSU trailed by eight at the half and held The Citadel to 23 second-half points and 35 percent shooting in the second stanza (8-23). However, the Bucs were 1-for-14 from three-point range in the second half and overtime, and finished minus-10 in made free throws in the final 25 minutes.
• Friday marked the Bucs’ first overtime game since last year’s regular season finale when ETSU fell 85-74 to UNCG. The Citadel moved to 2-2 in overtime games this season.
• With the win, The Citadel improved to 13-17 and the Bulldogs will now take on top-seeded Chattanooga in Saturday’s first quarterfinal at Noon.

TOP PERFORMERS

• Playing in his final collegiate game, David Sloan finished with a team-high 17 points on 7-of-13 shooting, four rebounds and two assists in 39 minutes and 46 seconds of action. With his two assists, Sloan finished the season with 160 on the season, putting him fifth among single-season Buccaneer leaders.
• Ledarrius and Ty Brewer each netted 14 points, while Ty and Mohab Yasser both registered double-doubles. Brewer tallied the 10th of his career as he pulled down 10 boards, while Yasser – a SoCon all-freshman team selection – recorded the first of his career. Yasser ended with 11 points and 10 boards in over 40 minutes of work.
• Jordan King (Albany, N.Y.) netted two of ETSU’s five made threes to finish with 11 points. King made the third-most three-pointers in single-season Buccaneer history with 97.
• The Citadel was led by Hayden Brown as he totaled a game-high 27 points and 17 rebounds, while Stephen Clark added 10 rebounds, eight assists and two blocks. Tyler Moffe played all 45 minutes and finished 22 points.

POSTGAME INTERVIEW 

Listen to comments from head coach Desmond Oliver and guards Ledarrius Brewer and Jordan King. 

GAME SUMMARY

The first half was tightly contested with six ties and five lead changes, but with the game tied at 34, The Citadel closed the final five minutes on a 12-4 run to take a 46-38 lead into the locker room.

After facing its largest deficit of the night at 48-38 in the opening minute of the second half, the Blue and Gold dug deep and fought back.

Over the next three-plus minutes, ETSU scored 11 of the next 13 points to pull within one when a three-pointer by David Sloan made it 50-49 at the 15:46. The Citadel again landed another punch as Hayden Brown scored the next five points to push the Bulldog lead back to six, but the Blue and Gold answered again.

The Bucs rattled off 10 straight scores to take a 59-55 lead when Ledarrius Brewer fed brother Ty for a dunk with just under 10 minutes left in regulation.

Again, the Bulldogs responded and regained a 62-60 lead following a layup by Tyler Moffe with 6:38 showing on the clock. The game remained tight down the stretch as ETSU pulled even at 62 and 64, but SoCon Freshman of the Year Jason Roche gave the Bulldogs a three-point cushion with 3:50 left.

ETSU rose to the challenge again and chipped away as Mohab Yasser scored the next five points of the contest, giving the Bucs a 69-67 lead with 14.5 seconds left in the second half. Unfortunately, ETSU couldn’t hold on as David Sloan fouled out with his fifth personal on the inbounds pass to Maynard and Ty Brewer’s open look didn’t fall at the buzzer.

With Sloan on the bench, the shorthanded Bucs ran out of gas as the Bulldogs scored the first six points of overtime and eight the first 10 to go ahead, 77-71. ETSU was able to pull within three when Jordan King converted on a three-point play with 38 seconds remaining, but the Blue and Gold couldn’t inch any closer.

For more information on ETSU men’s basketball, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the men’s basketball tab.