BOX SCORE

Sophomore Nick Barbour scored 26 points and redshirt freshman Corey Law added a career-high 16 points and eight rebounds as the High Point University men's basketball team pulled away from South Carolina State in the second half for a 74-66 win on Monday at the Millis Center.

"I was really happy with how our guys responded in the second half," said High Point head coach Scott Cherry. "We guarded well, took better care of the ball and held them to 28 percent shooting in the second half. In the first half we were throwing balls around and our offense really wasn't clicking, but in the second we came out well, forced turnovers and made some good shots."

High Point University improved to 3-2 on the season and handed South Carolina State its first loss, as the Bulldogs now stand at 3-1.

Each team held the lead early in the second half before HPU used a 9-1 run to open a 44-36, with just under 14 minutes left in the game. Junior David Campbell hit a three-pointer to kick start the run and Law scored four points with two free throws and a thunderous fast break dunk on a put back as High Point took its biggest lead of the game to that point.

South Carolina State continued to push High Point, trimming the HPU lead to as low as three points, but was unable to get over the final hurdle and tie the game. A fast-break dunk by Law pushed the High Point lead to 69-59, with just over a minute remaining in the game and sealed the win for the Panthers.

High Point's defense was big in the win, holding SCSU to just 33.3 percent shooting in the game (21-63) while grabbing nine steals and pulling down 27 defensive rebounds. Senior Eugene Harris had three steals to pace HPU.

The Panthers took control of the game early with a 9-2 run to open the game. Barbour picked up four points on one possession when he drained a three pointer from the left elbow while being fouled and hit the resulting free throw. The HPU defense forced three turnovers and grabbed four rebounds to limit the Bulldogs' opportunities.

SC State slowly clawed its way back into the game, eventually taking an 18-15 with just under eight minutes left in the first half. Khalif Toombs scored five points during the 8-2 run which gave the Bulldogs the lead.

Both teams struggled to find the basket early in the first half. Midway through the first period, HPU was shooting 31 percent (5-16) from the floor, just slightly better than South Carolina State which was shooting 25 percent (4-16).

With the early Panther lead eliminated, the two teams began to trade baskets as neither team was able to pull away. HPU managed to strike the final blow of the period though as redshirt junior Jourdan Morris hit a layup at the buzzer to give High Point a 30-29 halftime lead.

Jason Flagler paced South Carolina State with 16 points, followed by Toombs (11) and Darnell Porter (10 points, seven rebounds).

The win was the final game for HPU before beginning conference play on the road Thursday against Presbyterian at 7 p.m. The Panthers then swing to Big South-foe Winthrop for a Saturday matchup, also at 7 p.m.