Davidson Fends Off Appalachian State 70-52

Monday, January 12

Boone, N.C.

7:30 p.m.

Davidson College

Appalachian State

Photo by: Sideline Sports

1/12/2009 10:51:00 PM | Men's Basketball

By: Marc Gignac

Box score

BOONE, N.C. – Davidson had four players with double-figure scoring nights, and the Wildcats never trailed on their way to a 70-52 Southern Conference victory over Appalachian State Monday night in front of a Holmes Center record crowd of 8,350.

Stephen Curry led the Wildcats (12-3, 5-0 SoCon) with 16 points to go along with a game-high six assists and three steals.Max Paulhus Gosselin and Will Archambault each contributed 14 points with Brendan McKillop chipping in 13 points. With Curry in foul trouble most of the night, the Davidson bench outscored ASU's 27-7.

The Wildcats stretched their SoCon regular-season winning streak to 35 games, the second-longest in conference history and have won 42 of their last 43 league outings dating back to the 2006 season.

Davidson led by nine with 15:11 left in the game, when Curry picked up his fourth foul. But the 'Cats responded by stretching the margin to 16 points on a Archambault 3-pointer with 5:46 to go. The cushion grew to as many as 21 when McKillop hit a 3-pointer as the shot clock was expiring, one of three he hit from behind the arc.

Davidson's defense forced the Mountaineers into contested shots from the outside all night long, leading to Appalachian missing their first six 3-point attempts to start the game and going 2-for-11 in the first half.

The 'Cats played the majority of the first frame with four players who stood at least 6-foot-6-inches tall, countering ASU's guard-heavy lineup and helping Davidson amass a 19-16 rebounding advantage, including an 8-2 margin on the offensive end.

Following Appalachian's first made 3-pointer, the Wildcats countered with back-to-back makes from behind the arc to push their lead to 19-7 with 8:42 remaining in the half. Curry's running jumper in the lane at the 3:21 mark gave Davidson a 27-23 lead, and the teams traded baskets for the remainder of the half, with Davidson taking a 33-30 advantage into the break.

Appalachian was only able to attempt 21 shots from the field in the second half, connecting on nine, and went 2-for-9 at the free-throw line. For the game, Davidson held a 35-32 advantage on the boards, while holding Appalachian State (6-7, 3-2) to just four 3-pointers on 18 attempts. The Wildcats recorded 17 assists to just nine turnovers and had 11 steals, their third-highest total this season.

The Wildcats return home Wednesday, Jan. 14, when they play host to Elon at 7 p.m. from Belk Arena. The game will be televised on the Mid-Atlantic Sports Network.

Game Notes: It was the third game this season Curry was held under 20 points… The Wildcats play their fourth game in a week Wednesday…. Gosselin's point total was a season high and the first time the senior scored in double figures this season… Davidson is now a part of two Holmes Center records – tonight's attendance and Curry's 38-point night at Appalachian last seasons.