Liberty staves off Winthrop comeback
The Big South’s two hottest men’s basketball teams met Tuesday night in Lynchburg, Va. Liberty emerged with its winning streak in tact.
The Flames knocked off Winthrop 88-77 for their fifth straight win, halting the Eagles’ seven-game winning streak in the process.
Pat Kelsey’s team seemed poised to overcome a terrible first half when Keon Johnson hit a pair of free throws with 4 minutes left to cut what was once a 20-point Liberty lead to 74-68. But the surging Eagles - who had not only won seven straight, but won seven straight by double digit margins - only made one of nine shots in the ensuing couple of minutes, allowing Liberty to pull away late.
Winthrop (16-7, 8-4 Big South) had won its last nine against Liberty (10-15, 7-5) but that mattered little in one of the Eagles’ worst first halves of the season. Winthrop made just 8-of-26 shots from the floor and only one of its 10 3-point tries in the first 20 minutes; little surprise that Liberty - picked to finish last in the Big South preseason poll - led the entire first period (and eventually the game).
The Eagles missed their first seven shots from the field before Jimmy Gavin scored inside to cut the hosts’ lead to 13-7. Gavin then hit Winthrop’s first 3-pointer over 10 minutes into the game to knife into the Liberty lead (20-14), but the Flames inflated the advantage from there with an 11-0 run fueled in part by A.C. Reid. He came off the bench to score 17 in the first half, hitting all six of his shots, including five from beyond the arc.
Winthrop was hampered by early foul trouble with big men Zach Price, Duby Okeke, Xavier Cooks and Jarad Scott all picking up a quick two fouls at various junctures of the first 20 minutes. Gavin, Cooks and Johnson were able to carry Winthrop back into the game in the second half, but not over the hump. The Flames continued their ascension up the Big South standings and the Eagles missed their chance to climb to the top.
Turning point
Winthrop cut the lead to six or seven points at a couple junctures in the last 10 minutes.
Around the 9 minute mark the Eagles got it down to 64-57, but Johnson's deep 3 rattled out and Okeke was called for an over the back foul. A Gavin bucket after a pair of Winthrop offensive rebounds got the Eagles within seven (71-64) with 5 minutes, 36 seconds left and Johnson’s free throws with 4 minutes left left Liberty with just a six-point lead. But the Flames made the plays necessary down the stretch to win for the first time in 10 tries against Winthrop.
Critical
With just one player back from last season’s team, it’s taken Liberty a while to coalesce. But the Flames showed impressive cool to withstand Winthrop’s second half run Tuesday. Part of that was demonstrated at the foul line where McKay’s club was 23-of-25, a stat that helped sustain the hosts during a couple of lean offensive patches in the second 20 minutes.
Star contributions
Outside of a little bit of early foul trouble, Cooks was outstanding for Winthrop, scoring a career-high 26 points on 10-of-17 shooting. He added seven rebounds and seemed to get anything he wanted in the paint during the second half.
Johnson was also effective, especially in the second frame. He finished with 23 points, his 27th straight outing scoring in double digits, and added a career-high 11 rebounds for a first career double-double.
John Dawson and Evan Maxwell both had 20 to lead the Flames. Reid scored 17 off the bench, all in the first half during which Liberty built its ultimately insurmountable lead.
On deck
Winthrop is off for nine days before playing Longwood in Rock Hill on Feb. 11. Liberty plays Saturday at High Point.
This story was originally published February 2, 2016 at 9:20 PM with the headline "Liberty staves off Winthrop comeback."