Senior guard Akeem Scott scored 16 of his game high 21 points in the first half as High Point jumped out to an early lead en route to a solid 78-67 victory over Charleston Southern in their Big South Conference home opener on Saturday night in the Millis Center.

The Panthers improved to 8-4 overall and upped their league mark to 1-1 with their fourth consecutive home victory this year. The loss dropped the Buccaneers to 6-7 and 1-1 in the Big South. The game marked HPU's first home appearance since Dec. 3.

Using a stifling pressure in the opening half, the Panthers scored the games six points and outscored the Bucs 20-10 in the first 10 minutes of play. Scott spearheaded the HPU attack recording a steal, blocking a shot and scoring eight points during that stretch. High Point controlled the action owning as large as a 21-point advantage (39-18) in the stanza before taking a 39-22 lead into the halftime break.

"I thought our defense was the key especially in the first half," said HPU head coach Bart Lundy. "I thought we did a good job of creating turnovers and raising the tempo of the game with our pressure on the ball and in the passing lanes. I was glad to see us play with that type of focus and intensity from the opening tip."

High Point maintained it comfortable margin through the first five minutes of the second half but Charleston Southern began to chip away at the deficit closing the gap to just 13 points (59-46) with 8:41 remaining. The Panthers rallied back to push the lead back to 18 only to see CSU answer with another solid push that saw the Bucs pull to within 10. However, they would get no closer as HPU held on for the double-digit victory.

In addition to Scott's play, Arizona Reid and Landon Quick both chipped in double-digit performances scoring 12 and 10 points, respectively. For the fourth consecutive game, sophomore Jerald Minnis also provided the Panthers with solid minutes finishing with six points and a career high seven rebounds. HPU won the statistical battle out-rebounding CSU, the Big South's top rebounding squad, 37-33, and out-shot the Bucs 49.1 percent to 43.4 percent from the floor. High Point forced 16 turnovers while committing just 14 of their own.

For Charleston Southern, Vernon Huger led a trio of players in double-digits finishing with 14 points and team best nine rebounds. Ferdinand Cain scored 13 points including an 11-12 performance from the free throw line.