GREENSBORO, N.C. (Jan. 29, 2025) – Despite erasing a nine-point second half deficit and leading by one with four minutes to play, the ETSU men's basketball team let one slip away as the Buccaneers fell 70-65 at UNCG Wednesday night inside Fleming Gym.
 
Gabe Sisk had put back lay-up to give ETSU a 62-61 lead with 4:06 remaining; however, that marked the Bucs' final made field goal of the night as the Blue & Gold missed their last seven shots down the stretch. After Jaden Seymour was fouled on a three-point shot and netted all three free throws to pull the Bucs even at 65 with 1:02 left to play, UNCG closed the game on a 5-0 run to secure the win.
 
Quimari Peterson led the Bucs with 22 points on 9-of-18 shooting (4-6 from three), while John Buggs III added 14 points on four made triples. Unfortunately, Seymour and Karon Boyd went a combined 0-for-17 from the field but were 11-of-13 at the free throw line. Seymour went 9-of-11 and Boyd made both of his attempts. The duo accounted for 13 of ETSU's 30 rebounds. Sisk finished with seven second-half points on 3-of-4 shooting, while Davion Bradford pitched in with five points and three rebounds off the bench.
 
For the second straight game, ETSU was held below 40 percent shooting as the Bucs were 21-of-57 (37%) and went 9-of-24 from long distance (38%). The Blue & Gold shot 70 percent at the charity stripe (14-20). Meanwhile, UNCG shot 52 percent (27-52) – including a 58 percent mark in the second half (15-26). The Spartans were 7-of-16 from beyond the arc (44%) and made nine of their 12 attempts at the free throw line.
 
UNCG won the rebounding battle as the Spartans were plus-four and finished plus-six in second-chance points, 17-11. The Bucs managed to outscore UNCG by eight in points off turnovers, 14-6, but the Spartans held the upper hand in the paint, 26-20.
 
On a night where league-leading Samford lost at Furman and VMI won at Wofford, the Bucs couldn't gain ground on the leaders. ETSU has now lost back-to-back conference games for the first time this season and dropped to 12-10 overall and 5-4 in league play. UNCG moved to a perfect 5-0 inside Fleming Gym this season en route to improving to 14-8, 7-2.

 
The opening stages of the first half were nip-and-tuck, but with the game tied at 11, UNCG used an 11-2 run to open a nine-point lead, 22-13 with 7:14 remaining before the break. With the Spartans still holding momentum by being up seven with 4:22 left in the stanza, ETSU got hot quick by scoring eight straight points in 48 seconds to regain a 29-28 lead. Buggs started the surge with a three, while Maki Johnson followed suit with a triple and Peterson ended the run with step-back jumper following a steal by Johnson. Only two points were scored in the final 3:25 and the Spartans led by one at the half, 30-29.
 
Following halftime, the teams traded buckets in the early going, but with the score knotted at 35, UNCG rattled off five straight points to go up 40-35 at the 16:13 mark. The Bucs were able to inch within one thanks to a three by Buggs, making it 44-43 with 14:25 showing on the clock. The Spartans then mounted another run by scoring 10 of the next 12 points to take their largest lead of the night at 54-45 with just over 11 minutes left to play.
 
The Bucs never backed down and chipped away with a 17-7 run and recaptured the 62-61 lead when Sisk had the put back with 4:06 remaining in the contest. Unfortunately, ETSU went cold down the stretch by missing the last seven field goals – and despite Seymour tying things up at 65 with the three free throws with a minute to play – UNCG's Kenyon Giles stepped up late. Giles, who scored 15 of his 23 points in the second half, netted the final five points in the closing minute to spoil ETSU's comeback.
 
Giles, who was held to 1-of-8 from three, finished 10-of-18 from the field, while Donovan Atwell added 16 points, six rebounds and two blocks. Atwell accounted for four of UNCG's seven made threes.
 
ETSU returns home to host Furman in a nationally televised game on Sunday inside Freedom Hall. The game, which will be carried live on CBS Sports Network, tips off at 2 p.m.
  
For more information on ETSU men's basketball, go to ETSUBucs.com and click on the men's basketball tab.