JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (Jan. 21, 2024) – Playing in front of over 4,800 fans and on national television, the ETSU men's basketball team couldn't solve Chattanooga down the stretch as the Mocs pulled away for an 81-74 victory on Sunday evening inside Freedom Hall.  
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS 

• In a game where both teams had nearly identical shot attempts from the field and beyond the arc, the Mocs made six more field goals (32-26) and five more from three-point range (11-6). The Bucs shot 42 percent from the field and 21 percent from long distance, while the Mocs were 53 percent from the floor and 42 percent from three. 
• ETSU got to the free throw line 14 more times than the Mocs and finished 16-of-23, compared to Chattanooga going 6-of-9. 
• The Bucs were plus-10 on the glass, 40-30, and turned 14 offensive rebounds into 20 second-chance points. 
• Chattanooga took full use of the Bucs' nine turnovers as the Mocs converted those miscues into 16 points. 
• The Mocs finished plus-27 in bench score, 30-3, with Jan Zidek providing 21 of those points on 4-of-6 shooting from beyond the arc. 
• The attendance of 4,869 marked a season-high inside Freedom Hall. 
• The Bucs suffered their fifth straight loss as ETSU dropped to 9-10 overall and 1-5 in SoCon play. Chattanooga, who won for the fourth straight time in Johnson City, improved to 12-7, 4-2. 

TOP PERFORMERS 

• Ebby Asamoah led all scorers as he netted 22 points on 7-of-7 shooting from the free throw line. 
• Jaden Seymour and Quimari Peterson each finished with 18 points, while Jadyn Parker added seven points, eight rebounds and three steals. 
• Joining Zidek in double figures for the Mocs were Trey Bonham (19 points), Honor Huff (13) and Sam Alexis (10). 

GAME SUMMARY 
Chattanooga set the tone early and silenced the crowd as they jumped out to a 19-8 lead eight minutes in, thanks to hitting five of its first eight attempts from beyond the arc.  The Bucs regrouped and fought back with a 20-4 run and took their largest lead of the night at 28-23, following a lay-up by Parker with 6:41 left before intermission. 
 
ETSU was unable to extend the lead and Chattanooga scored 13 of the final 17 points of the half and led 36-32 after Bonham hit an off-balance three before the buzzer to grab momentum. 
 
Chattanooga carried that energy into the start of the second half as its lead grew to seven, 44-37, with 17:18 left to play. The Bucs threw another punch at the Mocs as ETSU inched within two when Seymour converted on an old-fashioned three-point-play, making it 47-45 with 13:33 showing the clock.
 
The Mocs answered with a 12-4 run to go back up 10 (59-49) with less than nine minutes to play. 
 
With their backs against the wall and pressure mounting, the Bucs kept clawing back. 
 
A Flagrant 1 foul by Chattanooga's Demetrius Davis provided a spark for ETSU as Asamoah made both freebies and converted on a jumper – pulling the Bucs within five, 61-56 at the 7:33 mark. 
 
Over the next three-plus minutes, ETSU would cut the deficit to four on four different possessions, but Chattanooga kept responding. 
 
The final time was 71-67 following a jumper by Peterson with just under four minutes to play, but the Mocs mounted a 10-2 run to pull away late and secure the seven-point conference win. Chattanooga went 4-of-5 in that final surge and made two of its three free throw attempts. 
 
UP NEXT
ETSU will look to stop the bleeding when the Bucs travel up I-81 to take on VMI Wednesday night at 6 p.m. inside Cameron Hall. 
  
For more information on ETSU men's basketball, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the men's basketball tab.