Rock Hill, S.C. – D.J. Burns Jr. posted a double-double with 22 points and 11 rebounds to help lead Winthrop men's basketball to a 92-86 win over Charleston Southern, Saturday afternoon.
WINTHROP (21-8, 14-2 Big South)
STAT LEADERS
CHARLESTON SOUTHERN (5-24, 1-15 Big South)
STAT LEADERS
- Deontaye Buskey (28 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assist, 1 block)
- Tahlik Chavez (22 points, 1 rebound, 3 assists, 2 steals)
- Claudell Harris Jr. (14 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals)
FIRST HALF
- The lead changed hands four times during the first three and a half minutes
- D.J. Burns Jr. opened the scoring dropping in a short hook and was answered with a three from Tahlik Chavez
- Micheal Anumba scored on a drive and then Deontaye Buskey drilled a three
- Patrick Good buried a three after a Burns Jr. offensive board to lead 7-6 and then Buskey drained another triple for a 9-7 lead for the Buccaneers with 16:24 left
- It was a one-point game after a Chase Claxton three from the corner, but the Buccaneers reeled off seven straight points for an 18-10 lead as Taje' Kelly scored four points during the run
- Charleston Southern continued to hold at least a four point lead for the next four minutes when the Eagles started to change the momentum
- Chavez made a three for a 23-16 lead with 10:02 left and that was answered with a Drew Buggs three on the wing
- Buskey hit another three to push the lead back to seven but the Eagles reeled off seven straight to tie the game at 26-26 with 7:31 remaining
- It started with two free throws from Sin'Cere McMahon followed by a score off a drive from Kelton Talford and capped off with a McMahon three off a turnover
- The game was tied at 33-33 with 5:17 left as the Eagles outscored the Buccaneers 14-10 the rest of the way for a 47-32 lead at the break
- Eagles shot 55 percent in the half while Charleston Southern shot 52 percent
SECOND HALF
- Buggs scored the first bucket of the second half as he dribbled into the lane and scored at the rim
- Kelly answered right back for the Buccaneers but Burns Jr. went to work inside on back-to-back possessions for 53-45 lead
- The lead was cut to two quickly after Chavez and Cheikh Faye triples
- Both teams continued to shoot the ball well but the Buccaneers worked their way to a five point lead at 74-69 with 6:31 to play
- Eagles worked their way to a 75-75 tie with 3:58 after Buggs scored off the drive again
- A second chance layup by Kelly had Charleston Southern on top 79-76 with 3:07 to play when Buggs found Cory Hightower in the corner for three to tie the game
- Eagles got a defensive stop and Burns Jr. was fouled on the rebound as he stepped up and made both free throws for an 81-79 lead with 2:35 left
- Buggs then drew a charge on the defensive end and then put the Eagles ahead by five on a pull up three, forcing a Charleston Southern timeout
- After another defensive stop Burns Jr. scored on an easy two after the Eagles beat full court pressure
- Winthrop held on the rest of the way for the six-point win
- Charleston Southern shot 53 percent from the floor in the second half and was 6-of-10 from three
- Winthrop shot 60 percent in the second half (4-of-12 from three)
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- For the game Winthrop finished shooting 57 percent from the field and was 12-for-31 behind the arc
- Charleston Southern shot 52 percent and was 15-for-26 from three
- Eagles finished the game 16-for-20 at the foul line and the Buccaneers were 7-for-11
- Winthrop took advantage of 13 Charleston Southern turnovers for 20 points
- Buccaneers edged the Eagles on the boards, 31-28 and had a 9-5 advantage in offensive rebounds
- Burns Jr. led the Eagles with 22 points and a career-high 11 rebounds for his first collegiate double-double
- Buskey finished with a game-high 28 points and Chavez added 22 points as both connected on six triples
- Buggs tied his season-high with 17 points and led the team with five assists
- Burns Jr. and Buggs were joined in double-figures by Good (15) and McMahon (100)
NOTABLES
- Winthrop finishes with a perfect record at home at 13-0 and have now won 16 straight home games
- It is the first undefeated home record in a season since the 2006-07 team went 15-0
- Finished with a 14-2 regular season league record, the sixth time a Winthrop team has won 14 or more league games
- This is the 12th time in program history the Eagles have won at least 21 games in a single-season
- Head coach Mark Prosser finishes in a tie for the most league wins by a first-year head coach (tied Towson's Terry Truax who had 14 in 1992-93)
UP NEXT
Winthrop will be back on the court on Friday, Mar. 4 at 6 p.m. in the quarterfinals of the Big South Conference Championship. The Eagles will face winner of the matchup between the #7 seed and #10 seed.
To keep up with the latest news on the Winthrop men's basketball program, follow the Eagles on Twitter (@Winthrop_MBB), Instagram (@Winthrop_MBB) and Facebook (/WinthropEagles).
