Western Carolina Snaps Longwood's Win Streak at Four Games - Longwood Athletics

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• Box Score (PDF): Western Carolina 64, Longwood 53

Next Game:

at Old Dominion

11/26/2021 | 4 p.m.

FARMVILLE, Va. – After a dominant stretch that included four straight victories by at least 25 points, Longwood's win streak came to an end at the hands of Western Carolina, 64-53, on the final day of the Jerome Kersey Classic Sunday in Willett Hall.
 
After shooting .517 from the field and averaging 84.3 points per game during that four-game tear, the Lancers (4-2) cooled off in Sunday's tournament finale. Deploying an athletic lineup that kept pace with the Lancers' fast-paced offense, the Catamounts (3-2) held Longwood to .303 (20-of-66) shooting from the floor and .154 (4-of-26) from three-point range, both of which were season lows for the Lancers and helped Western Carolina win its second straight game of the weekend.
 
The loss blocked the Lancers' potential sweep of the Jerome Kersey Classic, which was the program's first home multi-team event of the Division I era. Longwood took home the four-team tournament's honors as the top scoring team, averaging 72.3 points in victories 82-42 over American Friday and 82-55 over UMBC Saturday.
 
However, with both Longwood and Western Carolina playing their third game in three days, points came at a premium Sunday, as both teams slogged to their lowest scoring totals of the season. Vonterius Woolbright spearheaded a Catamount offense that did just enough to hold off Longwood, finishing with a team-high 16 points as one of Western Carolina's four double-digit scorers.
 
Woolbright's 16 points, along with 12 from swingman Joe Petrakis and 11 apiece from guards Nick Robinson and Marcus Banks, were enough to outpace another efficient night from Longwood's breakout forward Leslie Nkereuwem, who scored 17 points for his fourth straight double-digit scoring game. Nkereuwem finished 8-of-11 shooting and scored all of his points in the paint, but the rest of the Lancer lineup combined to connect on just 12 made field goals in an uncharacteristically off-shooting night.
 
Longwood's offensive struggles set the stage for Woolbright to put the Catamounts on his back with 14 points in the second half, 10 of which came during a 12-7 run late in the half that turned a seven-point lead to double digits at 52-41 with 6:05 to play. He sparked that rally with a three-point play, added a three-pointer that turned a four-point game to three possessions, and ended it with a layup that gave the Catamounts their first double-digit lead of the night.
 
However, Longwood countered and fought back to within four points thanks to a resurgent effort that senior DeShaun Wade sparked with a jumper and a three-pointer and cut Western Carolina's lead to 57-53 with 1:26 to play. Nkereuwem also threw down his team-leading 10th dunk of the season during that rally, but Isaiah Wilkins' follow-up steal-to-layup transition would be the final points Longwood managed.
 
Petrakis killed Longwood's momentum with a dagger of a three-pointer on the next possession, and the Catamounts held the Lancers scoreless on their final three possessions to secure the victory.
 
The loss is Longwood's first since a season-opening road defeat at Big Ten power Iowa and snapped a four-game home win streak in Willett Hall as well. Now after playing three consecutive game days, and five games in a 10-day stretch, the Lancers will get a break for the Thanksgiving holiday to prepare for this Friday's road trip to Old Dominion. That game will renew a Commonwealth series that has taken a hiatus of more than a decade, with the last meeting a Georgetown win on Nov. 17, 2009.
 
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Western Carolina Snaps Longwood's Win Streak at Four Games - Longwood Athletics
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