Saturday, March 04, 2006

2:06pm

As the wheels began to come off of the Mountaineer effort, one small fan epitomized the agony and determination of tournament basketball. A five-year old App St. fan began yelling at his mom and those around her to stand back up and start cheering defense. When she told him to “shush,” he waved her off and started jumping up and down, cheering in line with the cheerleaders. The Mountaineers were down by as many as 16 points, but pulled to within 6 on consecutive three-pointers. Some fans believe no matter what reality is showing. App. State was playing tired, uninspired basketball but somehow have been able to make Chattanooga earn this victory. UT-C’s Keddric Mays nullified consecutive ASU steals by hitting a three-pointer to push the lead to 71-63. But ASU fans and players refused to give up, making shots on the offensive end and putting Chattanooga on the line. A McLaughlin-Williams three-pointer with 48 seconds remaining put the Moc lead at 4. After only hitting 1 free throw, an ASU layup cut the lead to 3 and sent the Mocs back to the line with 29 seconds. That kid had the whole ASU section on its feet. After two free throws, D.J. Thompson was fouled on a three-point attempt that went in. His free throw cut the lead to 1 with 14 seconds. After two free throws, D.J. Thompson’s three-pointer was off the mark, sealing the Mountaineers fate as they lost by a score of 78-75.
If they win, Davidson will get to play a Chattanooga team that got a run for its money.
Hats off to ASU, they certainly made their mark on the 2006 SoCon tournament.

Now it's Davidson's turn.

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