HIGH POINT, N.C. - Lauren Bevis led the way with 16 points,
Nakyah Terrell added 14, and
Nevaeh Zavala recorded her first career double-double, 13 points and 10 rebounds, to help the High Point women's basketball defeat UNC Asheville, 62-54, on Wednesday night in the Qubein Center.
Site: Qubein Center
Score: High Point 62, UNC Asheville 54
Records: High point (13-10, 8-2), UNC Asheville (9-14, 3-7)
Head Coach Chelsea Banbury: "I do not think it was necessarily the prettiest game that we have played but down the stretch we were able to make plays… Nevaeh [Zavala] with a double-double, she came in and she was huge for us in the first half especially getting inside, drawing fouls, and getting some and-ones… I am glad there is not a description next to this one but we got away with a win and I am happy with that."
The Panthers got off to a slow start as they missed their first four shot attempts from the court.
Terrell got things going for the Panthers as she scored the team's first two baskets.
Callie Scheier nailed a three-pointer from the wing before the buzzer sounded to close out the first quarter and bring the Panthers within three points at the end of the first ten minutes, 14-11.
HPU struggled to shoot the ball in the first quarter, shooting 4-14 from the court overall and 1-7 from the three-point line.
Bukky Akinsola brought UNC Asheville's lead to one, 14-13, with a layup to start the second quarter.
Zavala got the momentum rolling for HPU as she recorded an and-one on back-to-back possessions for the Panthers.
Bevis tied the game up at 20 with a three-pointer from the top of the key with 5:14 remaining in the first half.
Terrell drained a three pointer to give her seven first half points and force UNC Asheville to call a timeout as the Panthers gained a 25-20 lead.
Bevis earned herself an and-one, three-point play to close out the second quarter and give HPU a 32-28 lead at the end of the first half.
The Panthers shot much better in the second quarter, shooting 53.3 percent from the court overall.
HPU opened the second half with a Bevis layup to give the Panthers a 34-32 lead.
The Panthers went the last 5:35 of the third quarter without a basket as UNC Asheville would go on a 6-0 run and take the lead, 43-39, heading into the fourth quarter.
Terrell found a cutting Zavala for a wide-open layup to bring HPU's lead within two points, 48-46 with 7:08 remaining in the fourth quarter.
Bevis euro-stepped her way to a bucket to give HPU its first lead since the 3:17 mark of the third quarter, 50-49.
After missing their previous 12 three-point field goal attempts, Scheier nailed her second three-pointer of the game to give HPU a two point lead with 1:58 remaining, 53-51.
The Panthers extended their lead to four points, 55-51, after Bevis drove to the basket and recorded a tough bucket.
HPU converted all seven of its free-throw attempts to close out the game and seal the win for the Panthers, 62-54.
The Panthers shot a much better 54.5 percent from the court overall in the fourth compared to their 23.1 percent shooting in the third quarter to help High Point complete their fourth quarter comeback.
HPU controlled the ball extremely well tonight as they only turned the ball over eight times compared to UNC Asheville's 14 turnovers.
Bevis led the way with a team-high 16 points on 5-13 shooting from the court overall.
Terrell dominated on both ends of the floor tonight as she recorded 14 points, six assists and two steals.
Zavala recorded her first career double-double tonight as she finished with 13 points and 10 rebounds.
"I feel great. It was super exciting if you could not tell from watching the game… It felt really good to help my team towards this win," said Zavala.
The Panthers picked up their eighth conference win of the season and extended their win streak to four games.
"We are in control of our own destiny right now with where everybody is sitting at in the conference. We have to show up and take care of business every single night… I am excited we got this one. Great that it is four in a row, but we just need to show up every night, handle our business, and continue to do so the rest of this month and into the conference tournament," said Banbury.
Up Next: High Point will host Gardner-Webb in the Qubein Center on Saturday, Feb. 10 at 7 p.m.
#H3U x #GoHPU
