Davidson, a team that has made more 3-point field goals than any other squad in the NCAA this season, displayed its preferred mode of attack Monday night, hitting on 11-of-22 shots from beyond the arc and dropping East Tennessee State, 80-71, at Memorial Center.
The Wildcats (11-6, 5-2) built a lead of as many as 12 points early in the second half and held off a pair of offensive rallies by the Buc (11-7, 5-2) to get the victory. With the win, Davidson pulled into a tie with ETSU for second place in the SoCon North, and ended a 12-game home win streak for the Bucs.
“I thought Davidson played a great game in every aspect,” ETSU head coach Ed DeChellis said, whose team now trails Appalachian State (13-4, 6-1) by one game in the North Division.
“We knew we needed to guard their 3-point shooters to keep from getting beat and we didn’t do that. I commend Davidson because that’s what they’re noted for and that’s what they did.”
Freshman guard Matt McKillop was the main contributor for the Wildcats, hitting critical baskets time after time down the stretch in the second half. McKillop, the son of Davidson head coach Bob McKillop, tied his career high thanks to 24 points on 8-of-13 shooting with six of those baskets coming from 3-point range.
Matt McKillop’s effort was only overshadowed by the play of ETSU’s Zakee Wadood who netted a career-high and game-high 26 points on 10-of-14 shooting from the floor and a 6-of-9 effort from the free-throw line.
Wadood said the Bucs — who pulled to within two points with 5:53 left in the game — simply could not overcome Davidson’s ability to throw down 3-pointers at crucial moments in the contest.
“Every little run we put together they’d hit a three,” Wadood said. “We’re a good team and they’re a good team, but we just didn’t make a run at the right time. We came out flat and they jumped out on us. We were lucky to just be down two at the half.”
Indeed, the Bucs were sluggish early on and traded baskets with the Wildcats throughout the first half. After the intermission, Davidson built their large lead and then watched the Bucs pull to within four points at the 10:27 mark and two points with 5:53 left. However, an intentional foul by Tiras Wade and a technical foul on Wadood at 3:45 helped the Wildcats keep their cushion on the scoreboard.
Davidson got double-figure scoring from Wayne Bernard (19) and Michel Lusakueno (10). For ETSU, Ryan Lawson and James Anthony netted 14 and 11 points, respectively.
ETSU will play at noon Saturday when they travel Chattanooga at McKenzie Arena. The game will be televised on Fox Sports Net.

Author