Winthrop powers past Longwood, advances into Saturday’s Big South semifinals

Winthrop raced to a 23-point halftime lead, then survived a shaky finish Friday night for an 88-79 victory over Longwood in a Big South tournament quarterfinal game.

The third-seeded Eagles (22-10) will face second seed UNC Asheville (21-10) at 2:30 p.m. Saturday in a semifinal game.

The opening semifinal Saturday at the Freedom Hall Civic Center in Johnson City, Tennessee, will pit top seed High Point (27-5) against fourth-seeded Radford (20-12) at noon.

Saturday’s winners play at noon Sunday for a spot in the NCAA Tournament.

For about the opening two-thirds of Friday’s game, Winthrop was on cruise control.

The Eagles took advantage of uncharacteristically cold shooting by Longwood and built a 45-22 halftime lead. Winthrop expanded the lead to 62-39 on an Isaiah Wilson layup with 14:09 remaining.

Then the Lancers, who shot 46 percent from the floor during the regular season, suffered a miserable first half. They hit only 7-of-32 field goal attempts and allowed Winthrop to build the 30-point-plus lead.

But Longwood’s shots began falling in the second half, and the Lancers cut 23-point gap to nine points (72-63) with six minutes to play.

“We knew it was going to be a battle in the second half,” Winthrop head coach Mark Prosser said. “But our guys stuck together through the adversity.”

Kelton Talford, who scored 12 of his 16 points in the second half, scored and gave Winthrop a 74-63 lead. Forward Michael Christmas then connected on a 3-pointer, and Longwood was within eight points (74-66).

Talford then scored five points in the next two minutes, giving his team a 79-66 margin with 4:20 left.

The clincher came with 1:27 remaining, when Bryce Baker connected on a 3-pointer, putting Winthrop ahead to 82-70.

All five Winthrop starters scored in double figures, with K.J. Doucet (17) leading the way. Talford added 16 and Bryce Baker and Kasen Harrison each scored 15. Nick Johnson added 12.

Talford (with 10 rebounds) and Harrison (11 assists) had double-doubles.

“Up and down our roster, we have people who are capable of a double-double,” Talford said. “You have to be ready when your number is called.”

Colby Garland led Longwood with 24 points, hitting 13-of-14 free throws.

The game was a foul-fest, with the teams shooting 74 free throws, in all. Winthrop made 30-of-42 from the line, while Longwood made 17-of-32.

In his postgame interview, Prosser jokingly referred to the contest as the “longest game in college basketball history.”

This story was originally published March 8, 2025 at 5:00 AM.