HIGH POINT, N.C. – In the matchup between the Panthers and Bulldogs, the High Point University men's basketball team was unable to maintain their first half lead through the second, after the Bulldogs caught fire from deep. Keeping it close, the Panthers could not push past the Bulldogs, resulting in a 72-76 loss.
Jaden House led the team with 17 points.
Site: Qubein Arena
Score: High Point 72, UNC Asheville 76
Records: High Point (8-7,0-3) UNC Asheville (10-6, 2-1)
G.G. Smith: "This was a tough one today, I thought we played really well for the most part in the first half, minus the first three minutes. I thought the biggest difference in the game was they started to rebound the ball in the second half. In the first half we were up 28-12 on the boards and it ended up being 42-34, so it was a big turnaround on the glass. We're disappointed in the loss but it's still early in conference season and we have to put it behind us quick to get ready for Upstate."
The Panthers were rolling in the first half, being led by
Ahmard Harvey with his first double-double (11 pts, 10 rbs) of the season in the first 20 minutes of play.
Following the Panthers first points from
Abdoulaye Thiam from behind the arc and another bucket from
Alex Holt, Harvey knocked down a three from the wing.
Tied at 25 all,
Bryant Randleman drove inside the paint, drawing two defenders to break Holt open on the block for an easy bounce pass. Holt slammed it down to start the Panther momentum.
HPU stretched the lead to eight twice, throughout the 10 minutes of play before the break.
After being up by nine at the start of the second half, UNC Asheville opened the second on fire. Knocking down four straight threes, the Bulldogs trekked on a 16-4 run to take the lead.
Hanging in there, a three-pointer from
Bryson Childress and a coast-to-coast drive for Randleman, kept the Panthers within one at the 12-minute mark.
The Bulldogs managed to take a 10-point lead with six minutes to go, but House's one handed and-one dunk helped spark the Panthers.
Down five with just under three minutes to go,
Sam Perez found Randleman breaking backdoor to cut the gap to three.
With 33 seconds left, UNC Asheville used a timeout to set up a sideline play. Still up by three, the Bulldogs let the clock wind down to 15 before taking the jumper.
Diving for the loose ball off the rebound, Thiam was fouled and sent to the free throw line for two. Making both shots, he cut the lead to one.
From there it became a back-and-forth affair at the free throw line between the two teams. UNC Asheville used the double bonus to their advantage, fouling the Panthers before taking any three-point shot attempt to send them to the line for two.
Still down three with five seconds left, High Point attempted to purposely miss their free throw to try for a tip-out rebound for a final shot, but the Bulldogs' Drew Pember boxed out and drawled a foul.
Making both free throws, UNC Asheville took the 76-72 win.
Up Next: High Point travels to USC Upstate on Saturday, January 7
th for a 3:00 pm tip-off in Spartanburg, South Carolina.
#GoHPU
