The High Point Panthers showcased a stingy defense and got 23 points from junior Arizona Reid en route to a 65-51 victory at the Millis Athletic Center on Saturday night.
HPU (7-4) forced 21 Gardner-Webb turnovers and held the Runnin' Bulldogs (2-7) to a near season-low point total in the game. GWU became the fifth High Point opponent to be held below 60 points this season. The Panthers also extended their current home win streak to 10 games including a perfect 6-0 mark this season.
"I thought we played a very solid game on the defensive end tonight," said HPU head coach Bart Lundy. "That type of defensive effort will allow us to win a lot of games. I was impressed with our focus and mental toughness tonight after having to take exams all week. Hopefully we can just continue improving and building on our performances."
Reid, the current Big South Co-Player of the Week, led a solid offensive attack for the Panthers. All nine HPU players that appeared in the game scratched the scoring column with junior Mike Jefferson adding 15 points to join Reid in double-digits. Reid, who has now topped the 20-point mark in six games this year, was also the squad's leader in rebounds with eight.
Jefferson and senior Landon Quick shared the team honors with four assists each and redshirt freshman Cruz Daniels blocked a pair of shots to increase his Big South leading total to 29 on the season. Sophomore Troy Bowen snapped a two-game shooting slump by draining a pair of three-pointers on his way to nine points. True freshman Eugene Harris scored five points and had for rebounds in his first collegiate start.
Takayo Siddle paced Gardner-Webb with 13 points while Chris Gash and Jake Sims both hauled down seven rebounds to lead their team.
The two squads played fairly evenly to start the game as both teams took a turn with the lead. Gardner-Webb used a 9-2 run to grab an 18-12 lead with 8:37 left to play in the first half. High Point answered with an 11-2 surge including baskets from four different Panther players to regain the lead, 23-20, over the next three minutes. After a GWU bucket closed the margin to one at 23-22, HPU held the Runnin' Bulldogs to just a single point for the final four minutes of the half while building a 30-23 halftime advantage.
High Point quickly increased their lead to double-digits through the first five minutes of the second half and maintained a comfortable margin for the remainder of the contest. Gardner-Webb closed the deficit to nine points, 48-39, with just over 12 minutes remaining but High Point scored the next seven points to halt the Bulldog rally.
The Panthers have to make a quick turnaround as they travel to Tallahassee, Fla., on Sunday for a Monday night meeting with Florida State. FSU will be the third ACC opponent that High Point has faced this season.
