ROCK HILL, S.C.- High Point men's basketball played Winthrop in the final game of the regular season on Saturday afternoon. Traveling to Rock Hill, South Carolina, the Panthers fell short of beating the Eagles, 78-84.
HPU was led by
Zack Austin with a double-double, 17 points and 10 rebounds.
Abdoulaye Thiam was one rebound shy from a double-double as he collected nine rebounds to go along with 14 points.
Site: Winthrop Coliseum
Score: High Point 78, Winthrop 84
Records: High Point (12-15, 4-11), Winthrop
It was a back-and-forth exchange between the two team in the early minutes as the Panthers went up 8-6 following Thiam's second three of the night.
Keeping the lead,
Jaden House knocked down a three to put HPU up by four with 13 minutes left to go in the first half.
Winthrop went on a 12-0 run within a three-minute time frame to go up 16-23. Four straight quality possessions helped the Panthers to tie the game up at 26 all.
Before closing the first half, Thiam drove baseline for an easy layup to score High Point's final point of the half, going into the locker room down five, 34-39.
The second half remained close as the Panthers trailed by a basket or two, tying it up at 55-55.
The Eagles took their largest lead of the night, just under the mid-way point but the Panthers stayed focused.
With one minute to play in regulation,
Emmanuel Izunabor knocked down two free throws to cut it to one. The Eagles finished the game going 5-for-6 from the line in the final 48 seconds. HPU could not steal a basket on the offensive end, resulting in the 78-84 loss.
UP NEXT: The Panthers will compete in the Hercules Tire Big South Tournament as the No. 8 seed, beginning on Wednesday at 6:00 p.m. at the BoPlex in Charlotte, N.C.
#GoHPU
