2022–23 Western Carolina Catamounts men's basketball team

The 2022–23 Western Carolina Catamounts men's basketball team represented Western Carolina University in the 2022–23 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Catamounts, led by second-year head coach Justin Gray, played their home games at the Ramsey Center in Cullowhee, North Carolina, as members of the Southern Conference. They finished the season 17–14, 10–8 in SoCon play to finish in fourth place. In the SoCon tournament, they defeated East Tennessee in the quarterfinals before narrowly losing in overtime to Furman in the semifinal round. The Catamounts were invited to the CBI tournament, where they were defeated by eventual champions Charlotte in the first round.

2022–23 Western Carolina Catamounts men's basketball
CBI, First Round
ConferenceSouthern Conference
Record18–16 (10–8 SoCon)
Head coach
Associate head coachJayson Gee
Assistant coaches
  • Ryne Lightfoot
  • Zack Freesman
Home arenaRamsey Center
Seasons
2022–23 Southern Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Furman 15 3   .833 28 8   .778
Samford 15 3   .833 21 11   .656
UNC Greensboro 14 4   .778 20 12   .625
Western Carolina 10 8   .556 18 16   .529
East Tennessee State 8 10   .444 12 20   .375
Wofford 8 10   .444 17 16   .515
Chattanooga 7 11   .389 18 17   .514
Mercer 6 12   .333 14 19   .424
The Citadel 5 13   .278 10 22   .313
VMI 2 16   .111 7 25   .219
2023 SoCon tournament winner

Previous season

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The Catamounts finished the 2021–22 season 11–21, 5–13 in SoCon play to finish in last place.[1] In the SoCon tournament, they were defeated by Mercer in the first round.[2]

Roster

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2022–23 Western Carolina Catamounts men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Hometown
F 0 Tyzhaun Claude 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 235 lb (107 kg) RS Jr Goldsboro, North Carolina
G 1 Russell Jones Jr. 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) 167 lb (76 kg) Sr Blythewood, South Carolina
G 2 Vonterius Woolbright 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 208 lb (94 kg) Sr Albany, Georgia
G 3 Tre Jackson 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 181 lb (82 kg) Sr Columbia, South Carolina
G/F 4 Tyler Harris 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 199 lb (90 kg) Sr Charlotte, North Carolina
G 5 DJ Campbell 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Fr Hampton, Virginia
G 11 Cam Bacote 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 176 lb (80 kg) GS Hampton, Virginia
G/F 12 Cinque Lemon 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 203 lb (92 kg) Fr Spring Lake, North Carolina
F 13 Marcus Kell 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 206 lb (93 kg) Fr Rock Hill, South Carolina
G 21 RaSheed Jones 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 178 lb (81 kg) Fr Marion, Indiana
F 23 Marlow Gilmore 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Sr Norway, South Carolina
F 24 Bernard Pelote 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 217 lb (98 kg) So Savannah, Georgia
F 32 Colin Granger 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 247 lb (112 kg) Jr Suwanee, Georgia
G 41 Miles McClure 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 227 lb (103 kg) Fr Franklin, North Carolina
G 42 Jalen Higgins 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 186 lb (84 kg) Fr Raeford, North Carolina
G 45 Elijah Cupples 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 200 lb (91 kg) RS Jr Harrisburg, North Carolina
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: January 2, 2023

Schedule and results

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
city, state
Non-conference regular season
November 7, 2022*
8:00 pm, SECN+/ESPN+
at Georgia L 55–68  0–1
Stegeman Coliseum (7,757)
Athens, GA
November 10, 2022*
7:00 pm, BTN+
at Maryland L 51–71  0–2
Xfinity Center (10,528)
College Park, MD
November 13, 2022*
4:00 pm, ESPN+
Brescia W 112–45  1–2
Ramsey Center (1,377)
Cullowhee, NC
November 18, 2022*
5:30 pm, ESPN+
at McNeese State
McNeese State MTE
W 88–69  2–2
The Legacy Center (1,497)
Lake Charles, LA
November 19, 2022*
12:00 pm
vs. Lamar
McNeese State MTE
W 98–91 OT 3–2
The Legacy Center (221)
Lake Charles, LA
November 20, 2022*
12:00 pm
vs. Lindenwood
McNeese State MTE
W 90–88 OT 4–2
The Legacy Center (169)
Lake Charles, LA
November 26, 2022*
2:00 pm, ESPN+
at UNC Asheville L 61–73  4–3
Kimmel Arena (1,522)
Asheville, NC
November 30, 2022*
7:00 pm, ESPN+
Gardner–Webb L 55–71  4–4
Ramsey Center (2,125)
Cullowhee, NC
December 3, 2022*
5:30 pm, ESPN+
USC Upstate L 64–79  4–5
Ramsey Center (1,313)
Cullowhee, NC
December 7, 2022*
7:00 pm, ESPN+
at Davidson L 64–72  4–6
John M. Belk Arena (2,869)
Davidson, NC
December 10, 2022*
4:00 pm, ESPN+
Brevard W 99–55  5–6
Ramsey Center (1,387)
Cullowhee, NC
December 17, 2022*
4:00 pm, ESPN+
at Tennessee Tech W 75–65  6–6
Eblen Center (557)
Cookeville, TN
December 20, 2022*
2:00 pm, ESPN+
Toccoa Falls W 117–50  7–6
Ramsey Center (688)
Cullowhee, NC
SoCon regular season
December 29, 2022
2:00 pm, ESPN+
UNC Greensboro L 47–72  7–7
(0–1)
Ramsey Center (1,130)
Cullowhee, NC
December 31, 2022
4:00 pm, ESPN+
Furman W 79–67  8–7
(1–1)
Ramsey Center (1,060)
Cullowhee, NC
January 4, 2023
7:00 pm, ESPN+
at East Tennessee State W 71–60  9–7
(2–1)
Freedom Hall Civic Center (3,104)
Johnson City, TN
January 7, 2023
4:00 pm, ESPN+
Mercer W 73–45  10–7
(3–1)
Ramsey Center (1,137)
Cullowhee, NC
January 11, 2023
7:00 pm, ESPN+
at Chattanooga L 76–95  10–8
(3–2)
McKenzie Arena (3,009)
Chattanooga, TN
January 14, 2023
1:00 pm, ESPN+
at The Citadel L 61–65  10–9
(3–3)
McAlister Field House (1,467)
Charleston, SC
January 18, 2023
7:00 pm, ESPN+
Wofford W 76–71  11–9
(4–3)
Ramsey Center (2,75)
Cullowhee, NC
January 21, 2023
6:00 pm, ESPN+
at Samford L 65–74  11–10
(4–4)
Pete Hanna Center (3,513)
Homewood, AL
January 25, 2023
7:00 pm, ESPN+
The Citadel L 70–81  11–11
(4–5)
Ramsey Center (2,021)
Cullowhee, NC
January 28, 2023
1:00 pm, ESPN+
at VMI W 71–65  12–11
(5–5)
Cameron Hall (3,265)
Lexington, VA
February 1, 2023
7:00 pm, ESPN+
Samford L 77–85  12–12
(5–6)
Ramsey Center (1,787)
Cullowhee, NC
February 4, 2023
2:00 pm, Nexstar/ESPN+
Chattanooga W 83–68  13–12
(6–6)
Ramsey Center (3,157)
Cullowhee, NC
February 8, 2023
7:00 pm, ESPN+
at Wofford W 95–91 2OT 14–12
(7–6)
Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium (1,194)
Spartanburg, SC
February 11, 2023
2:00 pm, Nexstar/ESPN+
at Furman L 59–93  14–13
(7–7)
Timmons Arena (2,577)
Greenville, SC
February 15, 2023
7:00 pm, ESPN+
East Tennessee State W 68–66  15–13
(8–7)
Ramsey Center (1,634)
Cullowhee, NC
February 18, 2023
2:00 pm, ESPN+
at Mercer W 71–68  16–13
(9–7)
Hawkins Arena (2,164)
Macon, GA
February 22, 2023
7:00 pm, ESPN+
at UNC Greensboro L 52–71  16–14
(9–8)
Greensboro Coliseum 
Greensboro, NC
February 25, 2023
4:00 pm, ESPN+
VMI W 85–66  17–14
(10–8)
Ramsey Center (3,586)
Cullowhee, NC
SoCon tournament
March 4, 2023
2:30 pm, ESPN+
(4) vs. (5) East Tennessee State
Quarterfinals
W 69-57  18–14
Harrah's Cherokee Center (4,851)
Asheville, NC
March 5, 2023
4:00 pm, ESPNU
(4) vs. (1) Furman
Semifinals
L 80–83 OT 18–15
Harrah's Cherokee Center 
Asheville, NC
College Basketball Invitational
March 18, 2023
7:30 p.m., FloHoops
(14) vs. (3) Charlotte
First round
L 56–65  18–16
Ocean Center (876)
Daytona Beach, FL
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Eastern.

Sources[3][4]

References

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  1. ^ "2021-22 Men's Basketball Standings". Southern Conference. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
  2. ^ "Catamounts Fall to Mercer in Southern Conference Tournament". Western Carolina University. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
  3. ^ "2022-23 Men's Basketball Schedule". Western Carolina University. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
  4. ^ "2022-23 Western Carolina Catamounts Schedule". ESPN. Retrieved January 2, 2023.