Rock Hill, S.C. – Keshawn Fisher scored a career and game-high 32 points as Winthrop men's basketball battled to a 103-98 loss to Queens in the Field of 68 Opening Day Marathon, Monday morning at the Rock Hill Sports & Event Center.
WINTHROP (0-1, 0-0 Big South)
- Keshawn Fisher (32 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 4 blocks, 2 steals)
- George Natsvlishvili (16 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, block)
- Kyle Morgan (16 points, rebound, 3 assists, steal)
QUEENS (1-0, 0-0 ASUN)
- Jordan Watford (26 points, 7 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 steals)
- Nasir Mann (19 points, 5 rebounds, assist, block, 2 steals)
- Isaiah Henry (15 points, 6 rebounds, assist, steal)
FIRST HALF
- George Natsvlishvili found Seifeldin Hendawy cutting down the lane and connected with him for the first points of the season and tying the game at 2-2 in the early going
- Queens responded with a 6-0 spurt for an 8-2 lead behind threes from Nasir Mann and Rickey Ballard
- Eagles answered with a 6-0 spurt of their own that started with Keshawn Fisher knocking down a 12 footer, a short jumper by Hendawy and then a layup from Anthony Smith III to tie the game at 8-8 at the 16:50 mark
- After a Kyle Morgan three made it an 11-9 lead for Queens, the Royals scored five straight points to open up a seven point advantage with 13:45 left in the half
- Queens continued to shoot the ball well and over and next two and a half minutes built a 10-point advantage just over midway through the half
- Winthrop tried to get the lead back to single-digits as Hendawy drilled a three to trail 31-21 with 8:11 to play in the half
- A Fisher three at the 3:19 mark finally got the lead down to single-digits at 42-33, but Queens continued to flourish offensively and with a late three by Mann, took a 55-38 lead into the half
SECOND HALF
- Winthrop opened the half on a 10-2 run that started with a basket inside from Natsvlishvili followed by a steal and flush from Fisher
- After a Jordan Watford drive and score at the rim, the Eagles responded with back-to-back threes from Fisher and Sims to cut the Royals lead to 57-48 with 17:24 to play
- No matter what the Eagles were doing, Queens seemed to have an answer and more as it pushed its lead to as much as 18 with 13:16 remaining
- Back-to-back threes from Kyle Morgan midway through the half pulled the Eagles within single-digits at 79-70
- Eagles were even within eight points after Nastsvlishvili scored inside, but a 7-0 run put the Royals back up by 15 with 6:11 to play
- With a little over four and a half minutes remaining the Eagles got a defensive stop and immediately pushed the ball up court as Sims quickly buried a wing three to get the Eagles within single-digits
- After getting a couple more defensive stops, it became a two possession game at 92-86 with 3:24 to play after Keshawn Fisher dropped in a straight away three
- Queens built the lead back to 10 points with 37 remaining but the Eagles battled until the end beginning with another quick three from Sims
- With nine seconds left, Fisher was fouled on a three and converted all three free throws to trail 100-96
- Eagles got as close as three points with two seconds left after a Hendawy bucket but in the end just ran out of time
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Both team shot well from the floor as Winthrop finished the game at 53 percent and Queens shot 56 percent
- The Eagles were 16-for-34 behind the arc (47%) while Queens finished 10-for-27 from long range
- Winthrop had the advantage on the glass 38-34 as both teams and 12-9 edge on the offensive end
- Queens outscored the Eagles 50-40 in the paint and 29-12 in fast break points
- Keshawn Fisher's career-high 32 points led all scorers as he also hauled in six rebounds, dished out two assists, had two steals and four blocks
- Kyle Morgan scored 16-of-18 bench points for the Eagles as he led the team with five threes
NOTABLES
- This is the second straight year the Eagles and Royals faced off in the Field of 68 Opening Day Marathon
- Fisher posted the first 30-point game by an Eagle since Kareem Rozier dropped 33 on Feb. 12, 2026 at Gardner-Webb
- He's the first Eagle to do so in a season opener since D.J. Burns Jr. had 30 in the 2021-22 opener
- The Eagles connected on 16 threes in the game, the most since hitting 13 in the 2024-25 opener and one shy of the season-opening record of 17 set by the 2006-07 squad
UP NEXT
Winthrop will be at the Winthrop Coliseum as it hosts North Dakota for its home opener on Saturday, Nov. 7 for a noon tip-off.
STAY CONNECTED
To keep up with the latest news on the Winthrop men's basketball program, follow the Eagles on
Twitter |
Instagram |
Facebook
