High Point's Danny Gathings scored a game-high 22 points and Jerry Echenique (14 points, 10 rebounds) notched his first-career double-double, but it wasn't enough as UNC Asheville knocked off the Panthers, 78-73, Saturday afternoon in Big South men's basketball action in the Millis Center.
The Panthers (14-10, 7-6 Big South) have dropped five of six since beginning Conference play with a 6-1 mark, while the Bulldogs won their second-straight game and improve to 7-17 (5-8).
UNCA placed three players in double-figures: Bryan McCullough (14 points), Omar Collington (12 points) and Billy Allen (11 points off the bench). The Bulldogs shot a cool 94.1 percent (16-of-17) from the free-throw line, including 12-of-12 in the final 2:24.
Patrick Hilliman (13 points) and Zione White (10 points) also scored in double-figures for HPU, which outrebounded the Bulldogs by a 30-20 count but shot just 13.3 percent (2-of-15) from three-point range.
High Point jumped out to a 10-2 lead behind eight quick points from Gathings, but the Bulldogs responded with an 11-2 run to grab a 13-12 advantage on an Oliver Holmes jumper. The teams went back and forth and UNCA held a 27-25 cushion before Gathings nailed a jumper to knot the score at 27-27 at intermission.
HPU scored eight of the first 10 points of the second half to build a 35-29 lead after Echenique put back a missed shot at the 17:09 mark. But a 7-0 Bulldog run put UNCA back on top at 36-35 after a three-pointer by High Point native Steven Rush. It was the first of nine lead changes in the final frame.
The Panthers regained the lead, 43-42, on a Hilliman layup with 11:38 to go, and pushed their lead to as many as five points (55-50) before UNCA pulled back even at 60-60 on McCullough's trey with 4:12 to play.
Gathings converted a free throw at the other end to give HPU a short-lived one-point cushion before Collington made perhaps the shot of the game -- a three-pointer while being fouled by White -- and converted the foul shot for a four-point play to put Asheville ahead, 64-61, with 3:33 to go.
The Panthers would get within three points on three occasions in the final minute, but Garland (4-of-4), Holmes and McCullough (2-of-2 each) were perfect from the line to help the 'Dogs escape with a hard-fought road win.
The loss drops HPU into a fourth-place tie in the Big South with Coastal Carolina, although the Panthers hold tiebreaker for seeding purposes for the Big South Tournament by virtue of a better record against third-place Winthrop.
High Point welcomes Big South leader Birmingham-Southern to the Millis Center Monday night (7:00 pm). The game will be the final home regular-season contest for Panther seniors Brent Halsch and John Stonehocker.
