# 2020–21 Western Carolina Catamounts men's basketball team

The 2020–21 Western Carolina Catamounts men's basketball team represented Western Carolina University in the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Catamounts, led by third-year head coach Mark Prosser, played their home games at the Ramsey Center in Cullowhee, North Carolina, as members of the Southern Conference. They finished 11–16, 4–13 in Southern Conference play, to finish in ninth place. They were defeated by The Citadel in the first round of the Southern Conference tournament.

## Previous season

The Catamounts finished the 2019–20 season 19–12, 10–8 in Southern Conference play to finish in a tie for fifth place. They defeated Mercer in the quarterfinals of the Southern Conference tournament before losing in the semifinals to East Tennessee State.

## Offseason
### Player departures

| Name | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
| Carlos Dotson | F | 6'7" | 270 | Senior | Riverdale, MD | Graduated |
| Onno Steger | F | 6'5" | 205 | Senior | Upper Arlington, OH | Graduated |
| Jason McMillan | G | 5'11" | 160 | Senior | Cherokee, NC | Graduated |
| D.J. Myers | F | 6'6" | 200 | Sophomore | Raleigh, NC | Left team |

### Incoming transfers

| Name | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous school | Years remaining |
| Cory Hightower | F | 6'7" | 222 | Junior | Flint, MI | Presbyterian | 2 |

### Recruiting class of 2020

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight |
| Sin'Cere McMahon G | Indianapolis, IN | Crispus Attuck High School | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 167 lb (76 kg) |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ||||||
| Kennedy Miles G | Burlington, NC | Williams High School | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 165 lb (75 kg) |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ||||||
| Josh Massey G | Monroe, NC | United Faith Christian Academy | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 195 lb (88 kg) |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ||||||
| Daniel Ransom F | Charlotte, NC | Vance High School | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 214 lb (97 kg) |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ||||||
| Brad Halvorsen G | Kingsport, TN | Christ School (N.C.) | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | 160 lb (73 kg) |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ||||||
| Tyler McGhie G | Denton, TX | Guyer High School | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 188 lb (85 kg) |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: ||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Non-conference Regular season ||||||
| November 25, 2020* 4:00 pm, ESPN+ | | vs. UNC Wilmington Mako Medical Asheville Classic | W 98–76 | 1–0 | Kimmel Arena (0) Asheville, NC |
| November 27, 2020* 1:00 pm, ESPN+ | | vs. Troy Mako Medical Asheville Classic | L 64–66 | 1–1 | Kimmel Arena (0) Asheville, NC |
| November 28, 2020* 4:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at UNC Asheville Mako Medical Asheville Classic | W 83–81 $^{OT}$ | 2–1 | Kimmel Arena (0) Asheville, NC |
| November 30, 2020* 11:00 am, ESPN+ | | Piedmont | W 96–58 | 3–1 | Ramsey Center (0) Cullowhee, NC |
| December 3, 2020* 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | | Newberry | W 91–84 | 4–1 | Ramsey Center (0) Cullowhee, NC |
| December 6, 2020* 12:00 pm, ESPN+ | | Tennessee Tech | W 76–75 $^{OT}$ | 5–1 | Ramsey Center (0) Cullowhee, NC |
| December 12, 2020* 4:00 pm | | at North Carolina A&T | W 104–98 $^{OT}$ | 6–1 | Corbett Sports Center (0) Greensboro, NC |
| December 15, 2020* 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at VCU | L 68–93 | 6–2 | Siegel Center (250) Richmond, VA |
| December 18, 2020* 6:30 pm | | at College of Charleston | W 76–70 $^{OT}$ | 7–2 | TD Arena (1,471) Charleston, SC |
| SoCon Regular season ||||||
| December 30, 2020 7:00 pm | | at East Tennessee State | L 78–86 | 7–3 (0–1) | Freedom Hall Civic Center (618) Johnson City, TN |
| January 2, 2021 | | The Citadel | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Ramsey Center Cullowhee, NC |
| January 6, 2021 | | Furman | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Ramsey Center Cullowhee, NC |
| January 9, 2021 | | at Samford | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Pete Hanna Center Homewood, AL |
| January 13, 2021 4:00 pm | | UNC Greensboro | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Ramsey Center Cullowhee, NC |
| January 16, 2021 2:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at Mercer | L 76–78 | 7–4 (0–2) | Hawkins Arena (1,027) Macon, GA |
| January 18, 2021 3:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at Samford Rescheduled from January 9 | L 78–82 | 7–5 (0–3) | Pete Hanna Center (351) Homewood, AL |
| January 20, 2021 4:00 pm, ESPN+ | | East Tennessee State | L 48–59 | 7–6 (0–4) | Ramsey Center Cullowhee, NC |
| January 23, 2021 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at Wofford | L 78–91 | 7–7 (0–5) | Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium Spartanburg, SC |
| January 27, 2021 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at VMI | L 61–87 | 7–8 (0–6) | Cameron Hall (225) Lexington, VA |
| January 30, 2021 1:00 pm, ESPN+ | | Samford | Cancelled due to COVID-19 issues | Cancelled due to COVID-19 issues | Ramsey Center Cullowhee, NC |
| January 30, 2021 1:00 pm, ESPN+ | | Furman Moved from February 15 | L 69–75 | 7–9 (0–7) | Ramsey Center Cullowhee, NC |
| February 1, 2021 12:00 pm, ESPN+ | | The Citadel Rescheduled from January 2 | W 76–75 | 8–9 (1–7) | Ramsey Center Cullowhee, NC |
| February 3, 2021 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | | Chattanooga | L 67–74 | 8–10 (1–8) | Ramsey Center Cullowhee, NC |
| February 6, 2021 1:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at The Citadel | L 63–74 | 8–11 (1–9) | McAlister Field House Charleston, SC |
| February 10, 2021 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | | VMI | W 74–72 | 9–11 (2–9) | Ramsey Center Cullowhee, NC |
| February 13, 2021 12:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at Furman | L 70–78 | 9–12 (2–10) | Bon Secours Wellness Arena Greenville, SC |
| February 17, 2021 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at Chattanooga | L 81–89 | 9–13 (2–11) | McKenzie Arena Chattanooga, TN |
| February 20, 2021 1:00 pm, ESPN+ | | Wofford | L 56–80 | 9–14 (2–12) | Ramsey Center Cullowhee, NC |
| February 22, 2021 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | | UNC Greensboro Rescheduled from January 13 | L 56–77 | 9–15 (2–13) | Ramsey Center Cullowhee, NC |
| February 24, 2021 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at UNC Greensboro | W 81–80 | 10–15 (3–13) | Greensboro Coliseum Greensboro, NC |
| February 27, 2021 1:00 pm, ESPN+ | | Mercer | W 85–61 | 11–15 (4–13) | Ramsey Center Cullowhee, NC |
| SoCon tournament ||||||
| March 5, 2021 5:30 pm, ESPN+ | (9) | vs. (8) The Citadel First round | L 86–100 | 11–16 | Harrah's Cherokee Center Asheville, NC |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern. ||||||
Source