GREENSBORO, N.C. – The UNCG men's basketball team suffered a heartbreaking 61-58 loss to Southern Conference rival Chattanooga Saturday evening at the Greensboro Coliseum as Ronrico White hit a disputed 3-pointer at the buzzer giving the Mocs the victory.

With the loss, the Spartans fall to the No. 8 seed in the upcoming 2015 SoCon Tournament and will face No. 9 seed Samford Friday evening at 6 p.m. in the first game of the tournament. The Spartans had a chance to claim one of the final byes in the tournament with a victory Saturday night, but fell just short.

The final play will be much debated as the referees took over 10 minutes to make a final ruling on the call, confirming their initial call of a good 3-pointer. The Mocs got the ball with 35.9 seconds remaining in the game and held for the final shot. White rose up and hit a 3-pointer as time expired for the game-winning shot with the referees ruling it was off before the shot clock had expired.

“This was a tough loss for us,” head coach Wes Miller said. “I was really hoping we would send Nicholas Paulos out the right way on his senior night and I thought we did with our effort. We played together and we fought for him. We have to keep our heads up and get ready for the conference tournament. We have a chance to improve on this feeling we have now next week in Asheville.”

Redshirt sophomore center R.J. White (Frisco, Texas/Frisco) led the Spartans with 14 points off the bench as seven different players scored at least five points in the balanced scoring attack. White connected on 5-of-7 from the field and hit just 4-of-9 from the free throw line while grabbing eight rebounds. He was also strong on the defensive end posting four blocked shots and three steals in 24 minutes.

Sophomore guard Diante Baldwin (Greensboro, N.C./High Point Christian) added nine points and five steals, including the game-tying free throws with 35.9 seconds remaining. Sophomore Tevon Saddler (Aberdeen, Md./St. Frances Academy) finished with seven points, seven rebounds and five assists as he continued his all-around play.

UNCG (10-21, 6-12) saw its two-game winning streak come to an end as the Spartans connected on 36.8 percent (21-of-57) from the field and hit 3-of-9 (33.3%) from distance. The Spartans were off from the free throw line in the loss, hitting just 48.1 percent (13-of-27), including just 8-of-19 in the second half.

Senior guard Nicholas Paulos (Salt Lake City, Utah/New Hampton School) played in his final game at the Greensboro Coliseum and finished with seven points. Paulos was playing in his 123^rd career game for the Spartans, the second-most all-time in program history. He and fellow senior Jamal Mitchell (Charlotte, N.C./Gardner-Webb) were recognized pregame with senior day festivities.

Chattanooga (22-8, 15-3) finished the regular season as the No. 2 seed in the upcoming tournament and has a bye in the first round. The Mocs connected on 37 percent (20-of-54) from the field, 6-of-18 (33.3%) from 3-point land and 62.5 percent (15-of-24) from the free throw line. White finished with 15 points off the bench while Casey Jones added 12 points and nine rebounds in the victory.

The teams traded baskets in the early going with the game tied at 13-13 with just under nine minutes remaining in the first half. The Spartans had the game's first run, scoring eight straight points to take a 21-13 lead. Junior guard Asad Lamot (Mebane, N.C./Lees-McRae) came off the bench and scored five straight points to ignite the offense, including the game's first 3-pointer.

Chattanooga answered back with seven straight points to narrow the gap to 25-23. Casey Jones was the spark for the Mocs, scoring four points in the run. The teams traded free throws in the final two minutes as the Spartans carried a 27-25 lead into the locker room.

UNCG came out of the break and scored the first six points off the game as Saddler converted an old-fashioned 3-point play while freshman Marvin Smith (Richmond, Va./Fork Union Military Academy) hit a 3-pointer. The Spartans maintained their seven-point lead before scoring five straight to take their largest lead of the game at 41-29. White started the spurt with a 3-point play before junior Kayel Locke (Baltimore, Md./McDonogh) added a basket off an offensive rebound.

The Mocs battled right back and posted a 13-2 run to narrow the gap to 43-42 with 12:18 remaining. Eric Robertson gave Chattanooga a lift as he hit a pair of 3-pointers before White hit a long-range shot to make it a one possession game. The Mocs took their first lead of the second half as Jones hit a pair of free throws and extended their lead to five at 53-48 with 6:19 remaining.

The Spartans chipped away at the deficit and took a 55-53 lead by scoring seven straight points. Baldwin scored four points in the run and his defensive play led to the go ahead basket by Paulos with 2:18 remaining.

The Mocs too a 56-55 lead with 1:15 left as White hit two free throws before the Spartans' White scored in the paint with 1:04 remaining for a 57-56 lead. Ronrico answered back hitting a pull up jumper with 54 seconds left for the one-point lead. Baldwin was fouled and hit the first free throw to tie the game but the second was off the mark setting the stage for the game's final play.

Locke finished the game with eight points and six rebounds in 28 minutes of play while Smith chipped in the same stat line with eight points and six assists in 33 minutes of action. Lamot rounded out the Spartans' scoring with five points in 17 minutes as UNCG was limited to just seven players due to injuries.

-UNCG-