In its return to Southern Conference play, the Elon University Phoenix dropped an 80-70 decision to the Appalachian State University Mountaineers in Boone this past Saturday.
Elon jumped out to a 9-2 lead behind sophomore guard Austin Hamilton and junior forward Ryley Beaumont. The offense began to click for the host Mountaineers, though Elon claimed its largest lead of the game at 31-19 following a Kevin Blake layup with 4:57 to play in the first half.
From there, the proceedings went south for the Maroon and Gold. Appalachian State closed the first half on a 15-3 run that knotted the score at 34 as the two teams went to the locker room.
The opening moments of the second half were a back-and-forth affair, and Elon held a 49-46 lead with 12:27 to play off of a dunk by junior forward Lucas Troutman. The next possession, Appalachian State sophomore guard Mike Neal drilled a three-pointer to tie the game, which was immediately followed by another three from junior forward Tevin Baskin, and the Mountaineers never looked back.
Beaumont had a dominating day, chipping in 26 points for the Phoenix. Troutman also reached double figures, putting up 14 points. Sebastian Koch and Jack Isenbarger scored nine apiece, with Hamilton contributing eight and Blake two.
For the host Mountaineers, senior forward Nathan Healy’s 22 points led the way. Neal added 17 points and Baskin poured in 16. Baskin’s stat line was a double-double, with the forward snagging 10 rebounds as well.
The loss dropped Elon to 8-7, 1-2 SoCon on the season with Appalachian State improving to 6-8, 2-1 SoCon as the regular season hits its midpoint.
Elon will remain in the mountains and face Western Carolina University in Cullowhee on Monday night at 7 p.m.