From Liberty athletics:

CULLOWHEE, N.C. The Liberty men's basketball closed 2012 with its third straight win, defeating Western Carolina, 63-62.

With the Flames trailing by one with five seconds on the clock, the Catamounts called a timeout with none left, leading to a technical foul on the home team. The infraction sent Tavares Speaks to the foul line, where he connected on both free throws. Liberty stopped Western Carolina on the next possession to earn their first victory over a Division I opponent, this season.

Liberty moves to 4-10 on the year despite committing a season-high 24 turnovers. The Flames' miscues are the most in exactly two years. Liberty committed 25 turnovers in a 64-62 overtime win at Gardner-Webb, on Dec. 31, 2010.

The Catamounts fall to 4-9 overall. The Flames now lead the all-time series between the two squads, 2-1.

Speaks led Liberty with 13 points. Tomasz Gielo and Flames' leading scorer Davon Marshall chipped in 10 tallies. Gielo also garnered Liberty's fourth double-double of the season, grabbing a career-high 11 rebounds.

John Caleb Sanders and Joel Vander Pol each recorded nine points. Vander Pol also swatted a career-high four blocks, the most by a Flame, this season.

Entering the contest averaging over 16 points, Trey Sumler lived up to the billing, pacing the Catamounts with 23 points.

In the early going, Speaks found Marshall open on a 2-on-1 fast break layup to put the Flames up by three. The Catamounts countered with four answered points to take the lead. Joel Vander Pol then put Liberty back on top with a traditional three-point play. Once again, Western Carolina responded, this time connecting on a pair free throws and a Sumler three-pointer. The trey put the Catamounts ahead, 15-12, at 9:03.

With Western Carolina still holding a three-point lead at the 3:24 mark, the Flames closed out the period with a 10-0 run to carry a seven-point lead into the locker room. Speaks highlighted the surge with four points, including a thunderous fast break jam, ultimately putting Liberty up, 29-22, at halftime.

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Liberty Catches a Break