The High Point Panthers raced to an 85-64 victory in their Big South Tournament quarterfinal game against Gardner-Webb on Friday. The Panthers shot 50% from the field and had 10 players play over 10 minutes in the game.
No. 1-seeded High Point strolled to a 14-2 conference record and has won its last 12 games, most of which came relatively easily. The Panthers announced the contract extension of head coach Alan Huss right before the start of the tournament, with the hopes of keeping him at High Point long-term.
The Panthers began their game against Gardner-Webb with the lead and maintained it throughout the first half while shooting 55% from the field at the end of the first half. High Point dominated at the end of the first half, going on an 18-10 run in the last three minutes. Conference first-team member Kezza Giffa had 18 points at the half, followed by Terry Anderson, who went a perfect 4-for-4 shooting from the field. Darryl Simmon II led Gardner-Webb with 10 points and two 3s. The Panthers led the Runnin’ Bulldogs 53-38 at the half.
Gardner-Webb showed more life at the beginning of the second half, starting on a 7-2 run. High Point responded, with forward Simon Hildebrant scoring five points in back-to-back possessions. The Panthers used their height and talent advantage and flattened the comeback hopes of Gardner-Webb. Giffa led High Point with 25 points while shooting 9 for 10 from the free-throw line. Simmons II scored 17 points to lead the Runnin’ Bulldogs.
Though High Point center Juslin Bodo Bodo did not play much due to foul trouble, the Panthers still grabbed 16 offensive rebounds. Anderson grabbed five of those rebounds and shot 6 for 7 in one the biggest outings of the season.
“[Terry Anderson] was as good around the glass as he was offensively,” said Huss. “He’s really, in a lot of ways, the heart and soul of our team because of his willingness to continue to fight.”
Anderson has dealt with significant injury issues throughout his career and sat out most of last season after having knee surgery when he played for Lamar.
Bench points greatly influenced High Point’s ability to dominate the contest. The Panthers had 46 points from their bench, with Hildebrant and Anderson combining for 29 of those points.
“When it comes to having an efficient offense, it’s about being able to score on second opportunities and creating extra possessions,” said Huss.
High Point had a rather high number of turnovers compared to their recent performances, tallying 10 giveaways.
“We ended up with 10 turnovers, which is high for us,” Huss said.
The Panthers did have 13 assists, with Giffa tallying four of them.
“When we throw the ball to our team, we have a lot of capable scorers,” Huss added.
High Point now moves to the semifinals to play Radford at noon ET Saturday on ESPN+.
