HIGH POINT, N.C. - Lauren Bevis led the way with 22 points, while Bukky Akinsola recorded 12 off the bench as the High Point University women's basketball team got back into the winning column with a 75-68 win over Winthrop on Wednesday night.
 
Site: Qubein Center
Score: High Point 75, Winthrop 68
Records: High Point (10-10, 5-2), Winthrop (9-12, 3-5)

Head Coach Chelsea Banbury: "We are definitely fortunate to come away with a win. I thought Winthrop, especially in the second half, played very well. They were attacking and we did not do a good job of guarding without fouling. This was another game where we put a team at the free-throw line way too much… But we did get a win and obviously Bevis scored a lot of points. She got those free-throws at the end but I thought Bukky and Nevaeh were huge off the bench for us."
 
The first quarter was all Bevis for the Panthers as she knocked down shot after shot, recording 10 points on 4-7 shooting from the court overall, and 2-3 from the three-point line.

Bev gets the first ?? of the night#H3U x #GoHPU pic.twitter.com/1fLA7p7oR1

— HPU Women's Basketball (@HPUWBB) January 28, 2024

 
A Shakira Baskerville and-one, three-point play extended HPU's lead to four.
 
HPU and Winthrop battled the entire quarter, trading back-and-forth baskets, but Winthrop would lead at the end of ten minutes, 18-17.
 
The Qubein Center was rocking after HPU kicked off the second quarter on a 19-2 run, and 12 straight points to give the Panthers a double-digit lead, 36-20.
 
The Panthers were dominant on the defensive side of the ball in the second quarter as they allowed five points on 2-11 shooting from the court overall, and forced five turnovers.
 
"We got stops and we got rebounds… it started with our defense. We only gave up five points. We did not really put them at the free throw line all that much that quarter either. We needed that run because the start of the third was pretty bad," said Banbury.
 
A wide open Nakyah Terrell layup with four seconds remaining closed out the first half for the Panthers and gave HPU its largest lead of the game, 40-23.
 
The Panthers struggled to find a basket as Winthrop started the second half off on a 13-0 run.
 
Akinsola found her groove in the third quarter as she recorded HPU's first six points of the half.

Layup city by 0??!!#H3U x #GoHPU pic.twitter.com/aNRlSgqHaW

— HPU Women's Basketball (@HPUWBB) January 28, 2024

 
Anna Hager nailed back-to-back three-pointers to extend HPU's lead to eight, 54-46, with under three minutes remaining in the third quarter.

Hager is owning the three point line ??#H3U x #GoHPU pic.twitter.com/M5wtqcc9Fw

— HPU Women's Basketball (@HPUWBB) January 28, 2024

 
The Panthers closed out the third on a 9-4 run, and forced four turnovers during that span, to give HPU a 60-50 lead heading into the fourth.
 
This game came down to whichever team wanted it more as High Point and Winthrop battled it out the entire fourth quarter.
 
The Panthers proved they wanted it more as HPU pulled away with a 75-68 win to get back into the winning column.
 
Bevis led the way with a game-high 22 points off 6-13 shooting from the court overall, 2-6 from the three-point line, and 8-8 from the free-throw line.

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Hager contributed 13 points, four assists, and three rebounds. Akinsola added 12 points on 5-7 shooting from the court overall off the bench.
 
"I thought Bukky played excellent tonight… She was attacking the basket, and was able to score at the rim, and then made some plays in the defensive end so I was happy to see that for her," said Banbury.
 
Up Next: The Panthers will travel to Farmville, Va. to take on Longwood University on Wednesday, Jan. 31 at 7 p.m.
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