WHEN: Saturday, Feb. 25 | 4 p.m.
WHERE: Millis Center (1,750)
RECORDS: High Point (15-14, 9-8) | Gardner-Webb (17-13, 10-7)
SERIES RECORD: High Point leads 27-24
LAST MEETING: High Point def. Gardner-Webb, 71-64, Dec. 29, 2016 in Boiling Springs, N.C.
LIVE VIDEO: Big South Network
LIVE AUDIO: High Point Panther Radio Network
GAME NOTES: Click here (PDF)
 
HIGH POINT, N.C.— The High Point University men's basketball team hosts Garnder-Webb in its final game of the regular season Saturday (Feb. 24). First tip at the Millis Center is scheduled for 4 p.m.
 
Saturday afternoon will be the final home game for seniors Miles Bowman Jr., Anthony Lindauer and Tarique Thompson. There will be a brief senior recognition ceremony before the game, starting at 3:50 p.m.
 
Kevin Burke and Stafford Stephenson will be back on the call on the High Point Panthers Radio Network on Saturday, with pre-game coverage beginning at 3:30 p.m.
 
PAW PRINTS
• Last time out, the Panthers defeated Campbell, 59-49, Thursday night at the Millis Center. Senior Tarique Thompson led HPU with 14 points. The two teams were nearly deadlocked the entire second half until senior Miles Bowman Jr. made a pair of free throws to give the Panthers the lead for good at 45-44 with 4:03 to go. With HPU up 47-46, senior Anthony Lindauer hit a long shot from behind the arc and freshman Luke Vargo hit a three from the corner off a feed from junior Jalen Williams to open up a seven-point lead, 53-46.
 
• Senior Anthony Lindauer went 2-5 from 3-point range against the Fighting Camels. Lindauer is third in the HPU all-time career record book for 3-point shooting percentage at .423 and on Thursday moved in to sixth in school history with 165 career 3-pointers.
 
• After missing two seasons with knee injuries, redshirt-senior Miles Bowman Jr. has emerged as one of the top players in the Big South. He is 12th in the league in scoring at 13.5 points per game and is averaging 14.6 points per game in conference play. The redshirt-senior ranks among the nation's leaders in free throw shooting and rebounding and he is second in the Big South with 11 double-doubles in 28 games. He is one of just 45 players in the nation to record at least 11 double-doubles this season.
 
• Despite ranking as one of the shortest teams in Div. I this season according to KenPom, High Point has been one of the top rebounding teams in the Big South since the start of league play. The Panthers won the rebounding battle in 13 of the last 15 contests and have allowed just 32.7 rebounds per game, tops in the conference. Bowman Jr. is ranked third in the Big South and 106th in the nation with 8.0 rebounds per game.
 
HISTORY vs. GARDNER-WEBB
High Point holds a slim 27-24 lead in the all-time series against Gardner-Webb. The Panthers picked up the early-season win, 71-64 Dec. 29 in Boiling Springs, N.C. The Panthers dished out 21 assists on 26 made baskets while turning the ball over a season-low seven times. Redshirt-senior Miles Bowman Jr. led the way for the Panthers with 21 points on 9-13 shooting, including a 3-4 mark from behind the arc. Fellow senior Anthony Lindauer scored 15 points, all in the second half, to go along with a career-high seven assists and five rebounds. Senior Tarique Thompson also finished in double figures with 13 off the bench.
 
HISTORY vs. IN-STATE OPPONENTS
High Point has complied a 331-273 (.5478 record all-time against Div. I programs hailing from the Tar Heel State. HPU's most common opponents are Elon (86-76, .531), Appalachian State (60-36, .625) and Western Carolina (40-23, .635). The majority of those meetings came during the NAIA era. High Point is 81-73 (.523) against Big South programs from North Carolina and 250-200 (.556) against the rest of the state's Div. I teams. HPU is 4-3 against Div. I teams from North Carolina this season with wins over UNCG, Gardner-Webb and Cambpell (twice) and losses to UNC Asheville twice and Western Carolina once.
 
A LOOK AT THE RUNNIN' BULLDOGS (17-13, 10-7 BIG SOUTH)
Gardner-Webb is 17-13 on the season coming off an 81-76 win over UNC Asheville on Feb. 23. The Runnin' Bulldogs (17-13, 10-7 Big South) reached the 10-win mark in league play for the fifth season in a row and will finish above .500 overall for the fifth-straight campaign – its longest stretch since 1978-1983. Tyrell Nelson and David Efianayi lead the Runnin' Bulldogs in scoring, averaging 13.3 and 13.0 points per game, respectively. Nelson leads the Big South in shooting at 55.4 percent and is fifth in the league in rebounding with 7.0 boards a game. LaQuincy Rideau directs the Gardner-Webb offense, dishing out a Big South-high 5.1 assists per game.
 
UP NEXT
The Panthers will await the announcement of the Big South Tournament after the conclusion of all regular season games. High Point will play in the quarterfinals on Thursday, March 2 on the home court of the No. 1 seed.