Saturday, February 26, 2005

CATAWBA SNAPS PC’S HOME WIN STREAK 67-57 IN REGULAR SEASON FINALE

CLINTON, SC – Catawba College, the 2005 SAC regular season champions, finished the regular season on a positive note by defeating host Presbyterian College 67-57 in South Atlantic Conference men’s basketball action Wednesday night in the Ross E. Templeton Center. Today was the regular season finale for both schools and the Blue Hose celebrated Senior Day this afternoon for forward Rich Adams and managers Brian Welch and Jonathan Wyman. The Indian win snapped PC’s 14-game home win streak including 13 straight wins at home this season.

In the first half, the Indians broke open an 8-8 tie at the 13:01 mark by putting together a 26-4 run over the next 10 minutes to pull ahead 32-20 with 3:38 remaining in the half. PC cut the lead to eight points at 34-26 on a pair of free throws by junior center Johann Collins (Raleigh, NC) with 1:15 remaining, but Catawba’s freshman guard Jamel Hamilton’s (Virginia Beach, VA) three-pointer moments later gave the Indians a 37-26 lead at intermission.

Catawba shot 58.3% from the field in the first half including four-of-five from three-point range. Hamilton led all scorers with 11 points on three-of-three from beyond the arc. The Blue Hose struggled in the first half, shooting only 27.6% from the field and were led by sophomore guard Sean Dixon’s (Marietta, GA) team-high 10 points.

In the second half, the Indians were able to hold off several Blue Hose comebacks with solid defense to keep the lead in double figures. The Blue Hose trimmed the lead to nine points on three straight occasions midway through the half, but Indians responded each time with a big basket.

Catawba pushed the lead to 13 points at 58-45 on a layup by junior forward Jolly Manning (Rocky Mount, NC) with 6:38 remaining, but the Blue Hose put together one final come-back attempt. PC’s Collins scored six straight points over the next two minutes to cut the lead to 58-51 with 4:20 remaining in the game. After a layup by Catawba’s junior forward Helgi Magnusson (Reykjavik, Iceland), PC pulled to its closest margin of six points (60-54) on a three-point play by sophomore forward Grant Herren (Oviedo, FL) at the 3:00 minute mark. The Indians iced the game at the free throw line hitting three-of-four attempts with under :30 seconds remaining to seal the victory.

Catawba (22-5, 12-2 SAC) was led by sophomore forward Chris Woolridge (Norfolk, VA) and Hamilton who each scored 17 points apiece. Presbyterian (17-10, 8-6 SAC) was led in scoring by Collins with a game-high 22 points on eight-of-10 shooting from the line while Dixon shipped in 12 points and two assists.