CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – This was just another night at the office for UNC Greensboro (UNCG) junior guard
Kobe Langley.
With the game tied, clusters of screaming and standing fans in a full-throated roar, and McKenzie Arena throbbing with enough noise to rival an artillery battery, Langley hushed the masses with a lethal 3-point strike with three seconds remaining.
Langley then stole the ball as time expired to secure UNCG's thrilling, 73-70 triumph over Chattanooga in a sweetheart of a Southern Conference men's basketball contest Thursday night.
With 15 seconds remaining and 12 seconds left on the shot clock, UNCG head coach
Mike Jones called a timeout. Afterwards, the ball landed in the reliable hands of Langley, who took a few dribbles, set his feet, and released a beautiful high arching shot that touched nothing but net.
In winning their third straight road game, UNCG ruined Chattanooga's perfect home record and ended the Mocs' four-game winning streak.
The soundtrack of silence was the best noise for the blue-shirted Spartans, who withstood a furious Chattanooga rally from a 12-point deficit in the final 4 minutes, 10 seconds. Chattanooga's David Jean-Baptiste tied the game at 70-70 with a 3-pointer with 28.3 seconds remaining.
When his shot swished through the net, the arena exploded with energy. The Spartans remained calm.
While Langley delivered his third game winning shot of the season,
Bas Leyte's dominance helped place UNCG in position for a victory. Leyte led the Spartans with a career best 23 points and
Miles Jones scored 10 points.
Leyte competed with force. He pirouetted with balletic spin moves around the basket to finish tough shots. Leyte scored 12 points in the first half and 11 after intermission.
During the second half, four of UNCG's five 3-pointers were made with less than two seconds remaining on the shot clock, including Langley's game-winner.
Records
UNCG 16-11 overall, 8-7 SoCon
Chattanooga 22-6, 12-3
Quotable
Mike Jones on the final play call.
"We didn't want to give them a lot of time. It wasn't a full shot clock and we knew they were going to have some time left. We wanted to take the shot as close to zero as possible and I think we did that. We wanted to get the ball into Kobe's hands and give him a little space. We didn't execute the play right, but at the end we wanted the ball in his hands. He made a big-time shot. We made so many big-time plays to get us in that position and to Kobe's credit, he made a big mistake on one end and we took him out. He regrouped and came back in and saved the day."
Langley on his winning shot.
"Coach called the play in huddle to basically get me going downhill. You know me, players gonna play and it was a big time shot. This is a moment I've been waiting for and working all offseason towards. (The Chattanooga defender) tried to pressure me and there was about seven seconds on the shot clock and coach wanted me to wait until one second until I shot the ball. My plan was to go by him and come back and get another screen if I can. Then, just make a play."
How It Happened
- Mohammed Abdulsalam and Langley finished with nine points each.
- Keyshaun Langley and Dante Treacy added eight points each.
- De'Monte Buckingham finished with 10 rebounds and a season-high tying four assists.
- UNCG dominated the rebounding battle, 33-20.
- Trailing by 12 points with 4:10 remaining, Chattanooga quickly erased its deficit.
- Buckingham made his only basket – a 3-pointer that gave UNCG a seemingly safe 65-53 advantage.
- The Spartans used a 10-0 run early in the second half to stretch its tenuous 40-39 lead to 50-39 with 12:09 remaining.
- Treacy capped the burst with a short shot in the lane and made the ensuing made free throw.
- Keyshaun Langley gave UNCG the lead for good, 34-33, with 17:36 remaining.
- Chattanooga scored the first four points of the second half to erase UNCG's 30-29 halftime lead.
- Jalen White's 3-pointer gave UNCG a 28-25 lead late in the first half.
- In sprinting to a 13-4 lead, UNCG made six of its first 10 shot attempts.
- Leyte and Abdulsalam combined to score 11 of UNCG's first 13 points.
Inside the Numbers
- Leyte has scored in double figures 10 times this season and 11 times during his career.
- This was the second time in three games that Leyte scored at least 20 points and set a career-high.
- Leyte and Abdulsalam combined to make 13-of-19 shots.
- This was the second time in three games that Jones scored in double figures.
- UNCG shot 55.1 percent (27-for-49).
- It was the fifth time this season that UNCG shot at least 50 percent, and the second time in its last three games.
- The Spartans became the seventh team this season to score at least 70 points against the SoCon's top scoring defense.
- Jean-Baptiste scored a game-high 24 points.
- Chattanooga's Malachi Smith, the SoCon's leading scorer, scored all 16 of his points in the second half.
- Darius Banks added 11 points.
Final Word from Langley
"This is a big win. The crowd was lit. We didn't want to lose. We came out here with the right mentality tonight. Everybody played a big part in this win from all the coaches to the last man on the bench. We had each other's backs, and everybody sacrificed anything and everything for the next person."
Up Next
- UNCG plays its final regular season road game on Saturday at 3 p.m. Eastern Time when it visits Samford.
2022 SoCon Tournament
- For information regarding the 2022 Ingles Southern Conference Men's and Women's Basketball Championships at Harrah's Cherokee Center – Asheville in Asheville, N.C., which will run from March 3-7, please visit: www.soconhoops.com. If you would like to purchase tickets, please contact the UNCG Ticket Office at 336-334-3250.
