Box Score Asheville, NC - The Wildcats (5-23) traveled to Asheville Saturday morning to take on Warren Wilson College (14-10) for their final matchup of the season. JWU was looking to knock off the #11 ranked Owls in Division II of the USCAA, but was unable to secure the lead at the final buzzer.
JWU was led into the first half by Kareem Wilson's great all-around play to take a 7-5 lead. Unfortunately, Wilson's run was short lived as he left the court due to an injury. Taylor Thomas stepped up and led the Wildcats at this point, scoring 4 straight points, as JWU expanded their lead to 13-9. Joshua Cohen hit a jumper that would give the Wildcats a 6 point lead with 8:49 left, but JWU would soon lose their lead as WWC would go on a 13-0 run over the next four minutes. JWU dug in on defense to close the half with a 12-4 run, taking a 29- 28 lead into halftime.
The Wildcats opened the second half with 5 quick points, extending their lead to 6. The Owls capitalized on Wildcats turnovers and missed shots, going on a 13-0 run and taking the lead 43-36. WWC dominated the boards to build their lead at 51-39 with 8 minutes left. JWU chipped away at the Owl lead, cutting it just 6 with 1:42 left on a Nigel Massey jumper. The Wildcats would play out the final minutes of the game strong defensively, but the Owls made their final eight free throws, and went on to take the victory, 64-52.
The Wildcats were led by Wilson with 11 points, followed by Joshua Cohen and Robbie Sterling with 8 points each. Cohen also led with 7 rebounds.
The Wildcats are next in action at home on Tuesday, February 12th when they take on Piedmont International. Tip-off is set for 7:30pm.