HIGH POINT, N.C. - Inside the packed out Qubein Center Thursday night, the High Point University men's basketball team took down Longwood University 93-76 on national television as Kezza Giffa led the way with 24 points.

Packed house for the bright lights.

Welcome to #BigSouthMBB Wildcard Thursday! ?? pic.twitter.com/tJVBaaZHJT

— Big South Conference (@BigSouthSports) February 2, 2024

 
Site: Qubein Center
Score: High Point 93, Longwood 76
Records: High Point (19-4, 8-0), Longwood (14-9, 2-6)
 
Head Coach Alan Huss: "I thought the crowd was great tonight… It was really good energy and our guys did a nice job of feeding off that energy. I thought we did a pretty sound job in the first half of getting out to a big lead and then we did just enough in the second half to hold on."
 
With a total attendance of 5,349 people, the Panthers got things going early as Giffa found a cutting Abdoulaye Thiam for HPU's first basket of the game.
 
Kimani Hamilton got the building rocking after he flushed down a two-handed jam down the lane.

ROCKIN & ROLLIN ????#GoHPU https://t.co/SM0cZgY1B3

— HPU Men's Basketball (@HPUMBB) February 2, 2024

 
Giffa was attacking the basket and dominating early as he recorded a quick seven points on 3-4 shooting from the court overall within the first six minutes of the game.
 
A Hamilton breakaway one-handed slam extended HPU's lead to 14 with under seven minutes remaining in the first half, 35-21.

5?? MAN THROWS DOWN ANOTHER ONE ??#GoHPU pic.twitter.com/Mhrf7H3BaO

— HPU Men's Basketball (@HPUMBB) February 2, 2024

 
Trae Benham closed out the first half with a three-pointer to give HPU the lead at the end of the first half, 50-31.

On our way to ?? ??#GoHPU pic.twitter.com/3oY2KUWZ9K

— HPU Men's Basketball (@HPUMBB) February 2, 2024

 
Benham was red hot in the first half from beyond the arc, nailing four out of his six three-point attempts to give him 15 points at the end of the first 20 minutes.
 
With the electric crowd behind them, the Panthers shot 55.2 percent from the court overall and 92.3 percent from the free-throw line going into halftime.
 
The Panthers' energy in the first half carried into the second as Juslin Bodo Bodo blocked a shot attempt on the defensive end, and Hamilton slammed down an alley-oop from Thiam on the other end to start the half.

Now accepting scores for the dunk contest ????#GoHPU pic.twitter.com/whHcALA7SP

— HPU Men's Basketball (@HPUMBB) February 2, 2024

 
Benham's hot hand continued as he drained his fifth three-pointer to give HPU a 19-point lead, 57-38.
 
Benham was not the only one with a hot hand as Duke Miles and Giffa drained back-to-back triples to give the Panthers a 70-49 lead.
 
Qubein Center was jumping after three-straight possessions with a field goal that included a three-pointer from Miles, and back-to-back dunks from Hamilton and Miles to seal the game for the Panthers.
 
HPU controlled the game the entire way, and despite a 14-5 run from Longwood late in the second half, the Panthers closed out strong and came out with the win, 93-76.
 
As the buzzer sounded, the Panthers extended their program record, 11 game winning streak, and remain undefeated with an 8-0 record in Big South conference play.
 
The Panthers shot an astounding 61.1 percent from the court overall, 42.3 percent from the three-point line, and 88.9 percent from the free-throw line on the game.
 
Giffa led the way with a game-high 24 points, on 8-12 shooting from the court overall and 4-6 from the three-point line, to go along with seven assists.
 
Benham added 18 points and five rebounds, and Hamilton contributed with 16 points, eight assists, four rebounds, and two blocks.
 
Up Next: High Point takes on Presbyterian College on Saturday, February 3 at 7 p.m in the Qubein Center.