BOONE, N.C. - Appalachian State used the inside-outside combination of Isaac Butts and Kellen Brand to build a 13-point halftime lead and held on for a 79-68 non-conference victory over visiting UNC Wilmington in the men's basketball season opener for both teams Friday night at the Holmes Center.

      The Mountaineers moved to 1-0 and handed Buzz Peterson a victory in his return to the High Country after a nine-year hiatus. The Seahawks dropped their opener for the first time in Benny Moss' four-year tenure in Wilmington.

      "You just can't spot a team that kind of lead and expect to come back at the end," said Moss. "We were able to get some points in the paint and get some key defensive stops when we needed them to give ourselves a chance. It takes a special effort on the road against a good team."

      The Seahawks, making their first appearance at the Holmes Center, remained winless in Boone in nine trips to the mountains. ASU, meanwhile, avenged a 108-101 double overtime loss to UNCW in last year's season opener at Trask Coliseum.

      Junior transfer John Fields enjoyed a smashing debut for the Seahawks before being ejected with just under four seconds remaining. The 6-9 center led all scorers with 21 points and added seven rebounds and four blocked shots in 26 minutes. Junior guard Daryl Felder came off the bench to contribute 12 points and senior guard Johnny Wolf had 11 for the Seahawks.

      Senior guard Kellen Brand paced three ASU players in double digits with 20 points. Junior playmaker Donald Simms collected 18 and junior center Issac Butts scored 12 for ASU, which shot 50 percent from the field for the game.

      The Mountaineers built a 44-31 cushion at halftime by shooting 60.9 percent from the field, mostly on inside buckets, and draining 15-of-18 at the charity stripe.

      UNCW trailed by as many as 19 points early in the second half before finally mounting a rally down the stretch. After Nathan Healy's jumper in the paint staked ASU to a 58-39 margin with 13:27 left to play, the Seahawks cranked up the defensive pressure and Fields went to work.

      Senior guard Darion Jeralds started a string of nine unanswered points to slice the deficit to 67-59 at 2:52 and Fields scored seven straight points to pull UNCW within, 72-66, with 33 seconds left. Wolf made a pair of free throws to cut the lead to 72-68 just one second later, but Sims made three free throws and Brand scored on a layup and converted two free throws when Fields was called for a flagrant foul with 3.7 seconds remaining.

      The game was a physical one that featured a combined 54 personal fouls and 67 trips to the free throw line. ASU converted 33-for-42 at the charity stripe and UNCW went 19-for-25.

      Butts scored eight of ASU's first 16 points on power moves inside and Brand went to the free throw line early and often as the Mountaineers built a working margin midway through the first half. Butts made all four of his field goal attempts in the first eight minutes and Brand scored 12 points in the opening stanza on a field goal and a perfect 10-for-10 at the free throw line.

      ASU converted four of its first five shots to grab a quick 8-5 lead and stretched the margin to 28-16 with a 12-2 run midway through the first period. Sims started the spurt with a floater in the lane at 10:34 that gave the Mountaineers an 18-14 edge and capped the run with an identical shot in the paint to give ASU a 12-point cushion with 6:42 left in the first half.

      UNCW returns to Trask Coliseum Sunday to entertain Atlantic 10 Conference member George Washington in the home opener for the Seahawks at 4:30 p.m. Appalachian State has a quicker turnaround, playing at East Tennessee State on Saturday at 4 p.m.

      GAME NOTES: Each team committed 15 turnovers in the contest...Junior point guard Chad Tomko, who dressed for the game despite a foot injury, was the only Seahawk that didn't see action...Freshman forward Will Ohuaregbe had one point and no rebounds in his debut for UNCW...The Seahawks won the battle of the offensive glass, 15-9...Ten Seahawks scored in the game...Brand went a perfect 14-for-14 at the free throw line...Junior guard Ahmad Grant of UNCW fouled out after scoring five points in 24 minutes...The Seahawks shot 39.7 percent from the floor, including just 3-for-16 behind the arc.