Hightower’s big night helps Winthrop handle HPU to keep Big South title dreams alive
It wasn’t clear what he was saying, or who exactly he was talking to, but there was a statement made nonetheless. And that was this: Cory Hightower was here.
With three seconds left in a first half defined by poor shooting and rhythm-less offense, Hightower ran to the wing on a fastbreak, found himself alone on the 3-point line from deep and let it go.
And before the ball could nestle through the rim — and give Winthrop a 32-17 lead that would be tested but ultimately never relinquished — he turned to a High Point contingent in the Bojangles Coliseum crowd and flung three fingers in the air, as if to mark his and Winthrop’s arrival to the 2022 Big South tournament.
It’s safe to say the Eagles have arrived.
Hightower said “he did not recall” what he said after that critical 3 as he headed down court, but his play expressed enough: He finished with a team-high 21 points on 7-of-13 shooting to help Winthrop defeat High Point, 68-51, in the quarterfinals of the Big South conference tournament on Friday evening in front of a lively crowd in Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte.
The win — one of only two wins through the tournament’s 10 games so far that has been decided in regulation by double-digits — keeps Winthrop’s quest for a third-straight NCAA tournament bid alive.
Winthrop’s victory didn’t come without a substantial scare, though.
The Eagles were up by as many as 23 in the second half, but they saw that lead dwindle to as few as nine with 6:09 left in the game. The impetus behind that run was simple: HPU decided to pick up full-court early in the second half to cause turnovers and general havoc on Winthrop’s offense.
And when all else failed? HPU would foul. And the Eagles — who finished 9-of-17 from the free-throw line on the game — couldn’t make the Panthers pay at first.
But Winthrop didn’t panic, head coach Mark Prosser said.
“Throughout our season, as adversity has hit, our kids haven’t batted an eye across the board,” Prosser told reporters. “It’s because of these two guys (Mike Anumba and Cory Hightower) and a bunch of guys who are in that locker room. So we feel very fortunate.”
High Point hung tough for a few more minutes, drawing the game to single digits once more with about 4:37 left after a Jaden House layup.
But the Eagles responded again: After a Chase Claxton rebound and Winthrop offensive reset with 3:45 left in the game, an Eagle shooter found himself alone in the corner from the 3-point line with two seconds left on the shot clock.
Who was it?
Who else?
Hightower.
Bucket.
“Honestly, I think I was just sitting in the corner for a little second, wide open,” Hightower said, recounting the play. “And when I caught the ball, I just heard everybody saying, ‘Shoot it!’ They do that no matter how many I miss. So I just shot it, and I made it.”
That pushed the score to 57-45 and ultimately ended High Point’s comeback hopes and, effectively, its season.
What’s next?
The Eagles next play the winner of Campbell versus Gardner-Webb on Saturday at 2 p.m. in the Bojangles Coliseum in the conference tournament semifinals. If they win that, they’ll play for the Big South championship on Sunday at noon.
Winthrop gets revenge on High Point
Winthrop only lost twice in the Big South regular season. One of those losses came in a 65-56 loss to High Point in late January. Micheal Anumba, Hightower and Prosser all weighed in on how this team now is different than it was just over a month ago.
“I feel like the main difference was that our team chemistry was much better since back then,” Anumba said. “We played much better together, we love each. And I feel like back then, we didn’t play for each other. And I feel like today we came out, and we were all on the same page, were all ready to win, all had the same goal in mind, and it showed.”
Added Hightower: “I think the first time we played them, we just honestly had a bad game, and I feel like we had a lot of time off to prepare for the guys we were going to play in the #7 vs. #10 seed game.”
Other notes
▪ Michigan football head coach Jim Harbaugh was in Charlotte’s Bojangles Coliseum for the game. Harbaugh was seated behind the High Point bench. The ESPN+ broadcast reported that he was likely here because of a family connection with HPU guard John-Michael Hughes.
▪ There was a brief skirmish after the game in the handshake line between a few Winthrop and High Point players. Prosser told reporters postgame that he didn’t see what happened.
▪ DJ Burns, who was honored pregame for winning Big South Player of the Year, had 10 points. Anumba finished with 11 and two assists before fouling out with just over a minute left to play. Drew Buggs finished with eight and a team-high five assists.
▪ Winthrop as a team shot 50% from the field and 7-of-22 from 3. The Eagles held High Point to 31.7% shooting and only 6-of-23 shooting from 3.
This story was originally published March 4, 2022 at 9:19 PM.
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