The senior class on the Appalachian State men's basketball team had plenty to celebrate Saturday.

For starters, Ike Butts, Omar Carter, Pete Hausley and Andre Williamson all were put in the starting lineup of the Mountaineers' 76-64 BracketBusters victory over Winthrop in front of 1,590 fans at the Holmes Center. It was the Mountaineers' third-straight BracketBusters victory. Ironically, the Mountaineers (12-15) last lost a BracketBusters game to Winthrop 65-63 in Rock Hill, S.C.

Winthrop (11-18) has lost four of its last five games.

Secondly, Butts and Carter led the Mountaineers in scoring with 15 points each. Carter broke out of a recent scoring slump and made 4-of-5 from 3-point range.

“We talk a lot about those guys this year and what we need out of them,” Mountaineers coach Jason Capel said. “You saw throughout the game what we're capable of and what they're capable of.”

“We started out missing a few shots early on,” Carter said. “We weren't sluggish, but excited. As soon as we calmed it down, we gave a good showing.”

Butts grabbed 15 rebounds to nearly equal the 16 boards he pulled down in a victory over Chattanooga Thursday. He also made 6-of-8 from the field, including a long jump shot that was just in front of the 3-point arc.

“I had two goals when I got to college,” Butts said. “I wanted to get 15 rebounds and I wanted to shoot a 3. I've got 15 rebounds before, but I've never shot a 3. I wanted it so bad. I blame it on the feet. If I had worn a size 10 I would have been OK.”

The duo helped Appalachian State win back-to-back games for the first time all season. The Mountaineers can make it three, and then four in a row with victories at The Citadel on Wednesday and at Western Carolina on Saturday.

Appalachian State pulled away from Winthrop late in the game with a 13-4 run that was sparked by a Mike Neal 3-pointer and capped by a Nate Healy basket and a Neal foul shot. The Mountaineers led 70-62 with 3:50 left and were never in any serious jeopardy afterward.

“We built our lead and we left off a bit,” Butts said. “We rebuilt our lead and we did what we were supposed to do.”

Matt Morgan led the Eagles with 22 points on 10-of-14 shooting. Reggie Middleton added 16 points, including nine on three 3-point baskets.

Winthrop's leading scorer, Andre Jones, made just 2-of-11 shots from the field and settled for four points. Jones averages 16.9 points per game.

“To me, we got beat down the stretch,” Winthrop coach Randy Peele said. “We're not very good offensively.”

Healy did not miss a shot in the game. Healy made all four of his shots from the field and all five of his free throws to finish with 13 points. Tab Hamilton added 13 points.

The Mountaineers have an outside chance at grabbing second place in the SoCon and grabbing a bye in the first round of the SoCon tournament. Appalachian State would have to beat The Citadel and Western Carolina, while Samford (11-16, 8-8 SoCon), which beat Furman Saturday, would have to lose its last two games at Western Carolina and at Chattanooga.

Elon (13-14, 8-8), which lost Western Carolina 78-76 in overtime, would have to lose to at Davidson and at home to North leading UNC Greensboro. The conference tournament is March 2-5 in Asheville.

“We're not giving up on our season yet,” Butts said. “We're looking forward go going down and playing these next few games on the road and then getting in this conference tournament. Anything can happen down there.”

 

Appalachian State 76, Winthrop 64

Winthrop (11-18)

Morgan 10-14 2-5 22, Jerome 3-4 0-0 6, Valentine 2-5 1-4 5, Middleton 6-13 1-1 16, Jones 2-11 0-0 4, Henry 0-0 0-0 0, Gamble 2-8 0-0 4, Smith 1-2 0-0 3, Bourne 0-1 0-0 0. Brown 2-4 0-0 4. Totals 28-62 4-10 64.

Appalachian State (76)

Williamson 1-4 0-0 2, Hausley 0-3 1-2 1, Butts 6-8 3-6 15, Carter 5-13 1-2 15, Neal 4-8 1-2 10, Hamilton 4-9 5-6 13, Vilarino 1-2 1-2 4, Healy 4-4 5-5 13, Trice 0-1 0-0 0. Woods 1-3 0-0 3. Totals 26-55 17-25 76.

Halftime score—ASU 41, Winthrop 64. 3-point goals—Winthrop 4-16 (Middleton 3-7, Smith 1-1, Gambell 0-3, Jones 0-5), ASU 7-17 (Carter 4-5, Healy 1-1, Wods 1-2, Neal 1-2, Williamson 0-3, Hamilton 0-3, Trice 0-1). Rebounds—Winthrop 33 (Valentine 8), ASU 37 (Butts 15). Assists—Winthrop 13 (Jones 4), ASU 14 (Neal 4). Turnovers—Winthrop 10, ASU 10. Total fouls—Winthrop 19, ASU 12. Fouled out—None. Technical fouls—None. Att.—1,590.