HPU men snap skid
Feb. 5—HIGH POINT — Back on the court after missing five games following an injury, High Point University reserve point guard Brock Williams delivered when given the opportunity in crunch time.
Williams hit two key baskets along with three crucial free throws down the stretch and finished with a career high 14 points as High Point University held off Charleston Southern 81-73 in Big South men's basketball Saturday night before a Family Weekend packed house in the Qubein Center.
"You just have to stay ready and always be prepared, give it your all and do the best you can," Williams, a 6-foot sophomore from Burlington, said.
Zach Austin scored 19 points, Abdoulaye Thiam 17 and Alex Holt 13 as the Panthers (11-13, 3-9) snapped a four-game losing streak and avenged a 106-69 drubbing earlier this season at Charleston Southern (8-15, 4-8), which is the last time Williams saw action. He came into the game averaging 11.5 minutes and 3 points per game.
"He's been injured and we have Bryant Randleman, Justin Taylor and Bryson (Childress) at the point and it's tough to get minutes because we're a deep team," HPU head coach G.G. Smith said. "Brock could hold his head down low and quit but he's always practicing and getting extra workouts in. He went to study hall at 8 a.m. the other day so that might helped him get more focused.
"I told him to always be ready because you don't know when it's your time. It's a long season and we're going to need to help us win games. He's a good on-ball defender and he was a good scorer in high school. We took Bryson out and kept Brock in because he had a feel for it."
Smith put Williams in with 6:44 left in regulation. Williams drove around a screen and went all the way to the basket for a layup that put the HPU up 62-61 with 4:16. After the Buccaneers hit a free throw and forced the last of seven ties, Williams nailed a 3 that put the Panthers ahead 65-62 and they never trailed again.
"(Thiam) set a flare screen and I saw an opening to shoot it," Williams said.
After a Buccaneer free throw, Thiam launched a 3 trying to beat the shot clock even though he had missed all seven attempts from behind the arc and had made just 3 of 16 shots. He made it, putting the Panthers up 68-64.
"Coach was yelling the time on the shot clock and I couldn't do nothing else but shoot it," Thiam said. "So I shot it and it went in."
Charleston Southern got no closer as the Panthers made 11 of 12 free throws in the last 64 seconds and stretched the lead to a game-high eight points on four occasions. Thomas was 4 of 4 down the stretch with Williams 3 of 4 and Austin (who scored 16 in the first half) and Ahmard Harvey each 2 of 2.
The Panthers had 19 assists, the most since 20 against Bridgewater, on 26 made baskets and snagged 43 rebounds, including 19 on the offensive end of the floor that led to 23 second chance points. Harvey led the Panthers with 11 rebounds and Thiam had eight.
"We shared the ball and we went to the offensive glass, that was our main focus," Smith said.
Williams and Thiam said the Panthers wanted to do well in this game ever since the lopsided loss at Charleston Southern.
"Yes. 100%," Thiam said. "Coach said to focus on our rebounding and play hard. Offensive was going to come so all we did was play defense and hold them down. Everybody bought in."
Tahlik Chavez led Charleston Southern with 31 points. He scored 19 in helping the Bucs to a 40-39 halftime lead and was held in check in the second period until scoring six at the end. Claudell Harris Jr. who burned HPU for 34 points in the previous meeting, added 18.
HPU played without leading scorer Jaden House, who had suffered what Smith called "an upper extremity injury." House said on the bench in street clothes with his hand and wrist in a brace.
"He tried to go today and wasn't feeling right so we decided to sit him today and get him ready for Campbell (on Wednesday night)," Smith said. "We missed his scoring but other than that we didn't miss a beat."
