Rock Hill, S.C. – Winthrop overcame a nine-point second half deficit to earn a 78-74 victory over Radford, Wednesday evening inside the Winthrop Coliseum.
WINTHROP (18-9, 8-4 Big South)
RADFORD (16-11, 6-6 Big South)
- Zion Walker (17 points, assist, steal)
- Jarvis Moss (17 points, 2 rebounds)
- Truth Harris (10 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals)
FIRST HALF
- Eagles jumped out to a 4-0 lead behind free throws from Tommy Kamarad and a short jumper in traffic by Nick Johnson
- After nearly two minutes following the Johnson bucket the Highlanders got on the board with two free throws from David Early
- Those free throws sparked a 9-0 run that was capped off by a right wing three from Chace Davis in transition
- K.J. Doucet stopped the run as he converted two free throws to pull the Eagles within 9-6
- Radford pushed the lead to 13-6 after back-to-back second chance points by Jonas Sirtautas
- Eagles trailed 15-8 when Doucet scored four straight points and then Johnson buried a left wing three to tie the game at 15-15 with just under nine minutes to go in the half
- It ended up being an 8-0 run by the Eagles as Johnson hit 1-of-2 free throws to lead 16-15
- Lead was short lived as Josiah Harris knocked down a jumper at the free throw line
- It was a one point Radford lead with 4:26 to play when Davids hit a three only to be matched by Isaiah Wilson at the top of the key to make it a one point game again
- After a driving layup by Johnson to trail 29-28, Radford scored the final four points to lead 33-28 at the break
SECOND HALF
- The second half started with the Highlanders getting the ball in the paint and Jarvis Moss knocking down a turn around jumper
- Highlanders scored the first four points out of the half to lead 37-28 at the 17:50 mark
- Eagles worked the Radford lead down to five points at the 14:51 mark after two free throws by Talford but a three by Moss on the ensuing possession made it a three possession game
- Radford led 44-35 after a Truth Harris score off the drive when the Eagles went on a 7-0 run to make it a two point game with 12:46 to play
- The run started with a Paul Jones III three from the right wing, then a steal by Tommy Kamarad led to a Kasen Harrison score at the rim in traffic
- Kamarad came away with another steal and Bryce Baker pushed the ball ahead to Harrison in the open court as she scored on the layup to force a Radford timeout
- Another three by Jones III, this time from the left wing, had the Eagles within three with 9:27 to play
- Radford scored the next four points (all by Harris) to push the lead back to seven with 8:22 remaining
- Eagles fought back to make it a two point game with 6:48 to play after Johnson converted two free throws and Jones III knocked down his third triple
- It was a two point game after Harrison scored off the drive but Radford answered with a three by Zion Walker
- Eagles had an answer of their own as Jones III buried a right corner three to trail 61-59 with 5:08 left in the game
- The Eagles pulled within one with 4:29 left as Harrison drilled a left wing three
- Moss put the Highlanders ahead by three, but a three-point play by Talford with 4:10 remaining tied the game at 65-65
- Radford responded with an And-1 off a baseline drive by Walker, as he converted the free throw for a 68-65 lead with 3:50 left
- Harrison drew the Eagles within a point as she scored off the drive and then after a turnover he scored high off the glass on a drive for a 69-68 advantage
- Talford drew a charge in the low post with 2:11 to play and the Eagles took advantage as Johnson buried a corner three in front of the Eagle bench for a 72-68 lead with 1:55 to play
- Walker made two free throws for the Highlanders to cut the Eagle lead to 72-70 with 1:43 left
- Moss cut the Winthrop lead to two again with 1:13 to play but Jones III stayed hot behind the arc, drilling a corner three to lead 77-72 with 48.7 seconds left
- Radford got a defensive stop and had a chance to tie the game but Johnson fouled Harris with 5.7 seconds left
- Harris missed the first free throw attempt and Radford called timeout before the second attempt
- Harris intentionally missed the free throw attempt but Johnson went high for the rebound and was fouled with 3.3 seconds left
- Johnson made 1-of-2 as the Eagles held on to win the game
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Winthrop shot 59 percent from the floor in the second half and ended up at 47 percent for the game
- Radford also shot 59 percent from the floor in the second half and ended up shooting 45 percent
- The edge on the glass favored the Eagles 31-29 and had a 12-9 advantage in second chance points
- The teams combined for 42 free throw attempts and together were a combined 36-for-42
- Each team finished with 15 turnovers each but the Eagles had 22 points off turnovers to 10 for Radford
- Winthrop also had the edge in the paint 32-28
NOTABLES
- The victory extended the home winning streak to 12 straight as it was the sixth straight league win at home
- It was also the 15th win at home on the season, one win away from tying the record for home wins in a single-season (16)
- Jones III finished with five triples in the game, his third game this season with five or more
- Jones III moved into 3rd on the program's Top 5 all-time three pointers made by a freshman
- Talford's 14 points gets him to 1,770 moving him within eight points of 3rd on the all-time scoring list with Xavier Cooks
- This was Johnson's second straight game with 20 or more points (20)
UP NEXT
Winthrop remains at home as it welcomes High Point to the Winthrop Coliseum on Saturday, Feb. 15 at 2 p.m.
STAY CONNECTED
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