Cougars fall to ETSU

JOHNSON CITY, TENN. -- East Tennessee State, which had struggled from the free-throw line on its way to a 1-3 start, hit five of its final six attempts from the foul line and the Buccaneers held off the College of Charleston, 77-71, Wednesday at Memorial Center.

Charleston fell behind early and trailed by double digits with five minutes left in the contest.

But the Cougars continued to battle and cut the lead to three points twice, but were unable to convert their opportunities to tie the score as they fell to 1-2 heading into Friday's game at No. 9 Tennessee.

Senior Casaan Breeden hit a 3-pointer with 1:01 left to pull Charleston within 74-71, then seconds later stole the ball, giving the Cougars an opportunity. But Charleston missed a couple of 3-pointers in the final minutes.

"We had two good looks," Cougars coach Bobby Cremins said. "We didn't play well in the first half. I credit this team for hanging in there. We fought back. Andrew Goudelock had a great game. That kid played his heart out.

"We made a lot of mistakes. I'm glad we did not come unglued. We stayed together, and by staying together, it gave us a chance to win."

Goudelock led Charleston, scoring 23 points and grabbing six rebounds. Jeremy Simmons tied his career high with 18 points and had eight rebounds, while Breeden had 15 points. Tennessee native Tony White Jr., who was suffering from flu-like symptoms, scored only two points.

The Buccaneers were led by Justin Tubbs, who scored 20 of his 29 points in the first half. Tommy Hubbard had 13 points and 11 rebounds.

East Tennessee State jumped out to a 7-0 lead and the Cougars fought an uphill battle throughout the game. Charleston trailed by as much as 11 on two occasions in the first half and was down by 10 at the break, 40-30.

The Cougars managed to pull within one point at 14-13 early in the game, only to see ETSU go on 13-2 run. The Cougars rallied again, going on an 8-0 run to cut the lead to 27-24. But the Buccaneers finished with a flourish for a 10-point halftime lead.

ETSU's biggest lead was 12 points at the start of the second half, but the Buccaneers were never able to shake the Cougars.

"They dominated most of the game, but things really got interesting," Cremins said. "I'm proud of the team."