CLEMSON, S.C. – The High Point University women's basketball team closed out its season in the first round of the women's National Invitational Tournament. The Panthers fell to Clemson (18-15, 7-11 ACC) after making their first postseason tournament appearance since the 2020-21 season.
Skyler Curran led HPU with 13 points while
Jordan Edwards chipped in nine points, five rebounds, and five assists.
Site: Littlejohn Coliseum
Score: High Point 46, Clemson 66
Records: High Point (17-15, 13-5 Big South), Clemson (18-15, 7-11 ACC)
Head coach
Chelsea Banbury: "I'm proud how hard our girls played all the way to the end. We made some good plays but unfortunately enough shots didn't fall."
The Tigers opened the game on an 8-0 run, but
Nakyah Terrell answered back with a free throw and a three-pointer from the top of the key in transition, cutting the Clemson lead in half.
Another 8-0 run from Clemson was ended by a
Shakira Baskerville layup. High Point closed the quarter on a 5-2 run with a triple from
Claire Wyatt before
Jordan Edwards tallied her first points of the night.
Clemson started the second period with a 9-0 run before HPU answered with a layup from
Amaria McNear on a pass from Terrell. The Panthers added another five consecutive points with a three-pointer from
Skyler Curran, who broke 1,700 career points with the make, and two free throws from Baskerville.
An 8-3 run sparked by four points from
Jordan Edwards brought High Point back within 36-26, but Clemson closed the half with two free throws to take a 12-point advantage into the break.
Both teams traded baskets throughout the third quarter, but HPU was not able to trim the deficit to less than 11 points. Curran had two triples while Wyatt added another.
Jordan Edwards opened fourth quarter scoring for HPU with another make from deep, bringing her total up to nine points while HPU trailed, 53-42 with 9:03 remaining in the game.
Curran added another layup to break up a 13-2 run by the Tigers. McNear added another basket through contact in the final two minutes of play as well.
Skyler Curran,
Jenson Edwards,
Jordan Edwards, and
Courtney Meadows played their final games in the Purple and White, finishing their careers as one of High Point's most accomplished classes with an NCAA Tournament appearance and two WNIT appearances.
#H3U x #GoHPU
