High Point holds off Winthrop forces 3-way tie for first place in Big South

Two speculative efforts nearly flew in for Winthrop in the final seconds against High Point, but the Panthers escaped with an 87-85 win that only muddies up the Big South Conference title race even more.

Trailing by two with six seconds remaining, the Eagles (20-8, 12-5 Big South) inbounded the ball from the baseline under their goal. Keon Johnson took the pass and flung a 3 from the corner over a pair of defenders; it clanged off the rim. The rebound was tapped out to Xavier Cooks and his hasty lob also plunked off the rim.

“It was unfortunate,” said Winthrop coach Pat Kelsey, “but we got the ball in the guy’s hands that has done it so many times for us throughout his career. It just didn’t go down.”

The Eagles trailed by 15 at one point in the second half, but rallied to have a chance to win. That was encouraging to Kelsey, despite the post-loss gloom in his team’s locker room, but the loss drops them into a three-way tie for first place with High Point and UNC Asheville headed into the final regular season game Saturday at Campbell.

On the other side, High Point coach Scott Cherry was thrilled with his team’s ability to knock off the Big South’s No. 1 team without star player John Brown for the final 24 minutes. The fifth-year senior got his foot stepped on with about five minutes left in the first half and didn’t return. His status for the next few weeks will be determined by a doctor’s appointment Friday morning.

“You could see these guys wanted it really bad,” said Cherry, whose program hasn’t lost to Winthrop at home since 2007. “Just proud of them.”

Winthrop shot over 59 percent in the first half, including 8-of-12 from beyond the 3-point arc, and still trailed, 47-42. The big culprit was nine turnovers - High Point (19-9, 12-5) only gave it away once - which fueled a number of easy run-outs for the home team. Brown was in scintillating form in the first half, scoring 19 points, including buckets on one fan-frenzying five-possession stretch.

As good as Brown was, Jimmy Gavin ensured the Eagles were only down five at the break. The Winthrop grad student showed his usual fearlessness with a series of deep, well-defended 3-pointers. He hit 4-of-5 from beyond the arc, and, combined with an eight-point scoring streak from Keon Johnson, made sure Winthrop was able to offset some of its giveaways.

Turning point

Winthrop trailed by six points with 4 minutes, 39 seconds left but had one last charge left. After Cooks scored while drawing a foul, the converted foul shot gave the Eagles their first lead of the game, 82-80, with 3 minutes, 24 seconds to play. Adam Weary hit a three, then scored inside to push the Panthers back in front, but he missed a late shot that could’ve given Cherry’s team a cushion.

Instead, Winthrop raced the other way and called timeout. The Eagles turned the ball over, but got it right back when Johnson was pushed in the back chasing an inbounds pass. That gave Winthrop the ball under its basket with six seconds left, down two points.

“It was such a crazy point once the ball came off the rim,” said Kelsey. “I think it was Xavier that got the rebound and he gave great effort to go secure it but I don’t think he had an idea of how much time was on the clock. There was still about a second and a half but there’s no way he could have saw it. He was trying to pursue the ball.”

Critical

Winthrop couldn’t overcome a spate of costly turnovers or High Point’s major offensive rebounding advantage.

Careless turnovers helped High Point into a big lead early in the second half and the Panthers’ second chance points - many coming when multiple Eagles went for a shot block, leaving the weakside unattended - staved off the Eagles’ comeback attempts.

“That was huge,” said Kelsey. “They really hurt us in transition in the first half, and a lot of it was off our turnovers. They were shot out of a cannon to start that game. John Brown looked like he had a supercharged battery inserted under his chest. He was just playing at a whole ‘nother level.”

Star contributions

Gavin finished with 20 points, all of them coming during his sizzling first half. High Point adjusted at halftime and Gavin naturally faded out of the game a bit as Johnson took over in the second half.

“Just tried to keep his touches down,” said Cherry. “If you were able to keep him from catching it, do it.”

Johnson was massive in the second period, finishing with 25 points and a number of key baskets that spurred the Eagles’ comeback. And Zach Price was key in the comeback also, pitching in 10 points and seven rebounds.

Brown was a disappointed figure sitting in the first seat of the Panthers’ bench, but he was electric in the first 16 minutes, scoring 19 points and making four steals.

While Brown’s future status is uncertain, 6-foot-6 forward Bowman gave High Point and Cherry some hope that there is life after Brown - if necessary. Bowman finished with 15 points and 11 boards.

Bowman only recently made his way into the High Point rotation. But he firmly cemented his place in the lineup with 17 points in his last outing against Radford, and a huge contribution Thursday night, including six offensive boards.

“Those offensive rebounds, they all add up,” said Bowman, whose multiple putbacks helped stave off Winthrop’s comeback surge at different junctures.

On deck

Winthrop travels to Campbell on Saturday, while High Point visits Presbyterian. Asheville beat Liberty Thursday night to keep pace. If Winthrop wins and High Point and Asheville lose, the Eagles will claim first place; the same goes for any of the three teams. If all three win to finish 13-5, High Point would claim the No. 1 seed by virtue of its win over Asheville (Winthrop and the Bulldogs split two games).

Box score

This story was originally published February 26, 2016 at 12:26 AM with the headline "High Point holds off Winthrop forces 3-way tie for first place in Big South."