Gardner-Webb University
Colorado
Inside Game Lifts Colorado To 87-78 Win Over Gardner-Webb Wednesday Night
March 18, 2015 | Men's Basketball
BOULDER, Colo. --- Tyrell Nelson (Charlotte, N.C.) poured in a career-high 27 points with a perfect 10-for-10 night from the floor, and senior Tyler Strange (Leominster, Mass.) dished out a game-high eight assists, as Colorado scored 66 of its 87 points in the paint en route to an 87-78 win over Gardner-Webb in the first round of the 2015 College Basketball Invitational on Wednesday evening.
Colorado (16-17) made the most of its size advantage inside, outscoring Gardner-Webb (20-15) by a 66-30 margin in the paint while dominating the game on the glass, 43-18, including a 19-3 difference on the offensive boards.
The Runnin' Bulldogs connected on 50.9 percent of their attempts from the floor, including a 56.5 percent clip in the first half, while Colorado knocked down 52.8 percent of its field goal attempts in the contest. Gardner-Webb hit 11 three-pointers, including seven in the first half, and converted 13-of-15 at the free throw line.
Nelson led the way for the Runnin' Bulldogs with a career night, shooting a perfect 10-for-10 from the floor and knocking down 7-of-9 at the stripe for a career-high 27 points. Adonis Burbage (Orlando, Fla.) added 13 points on 5-of-9 shooting, as Harold McBride (Bronx, N.Y.) accounted for 10 points.
Strange and Jarvis Davis (Columbia, S.C.) each chipped in eight points, as Strange dished out a game-high eight assists to finish his career with 651 dimes. His 260 assists this season establishes a new single-season program record, and ranks second in Big South Conference history.
Strange ends his storied Gardner-Webb career with 927 points (tied 6th – GWU D1), 651 assists (1st at GWU, 2nd Big South), 322 rebounds and 207 steals in 132 career games, including 113 starts. The senior guard also knocked down 172 three-pointers in his career, which ranks third in the program's Division I era.
Davis finishes his Gardner-Webb career with exactly 500 points, scoring 308 points in 35 starts during his senior season. The Columbia, S.C. native appeared in 88 games as a Runnin' Bulldog, pulling down 171 rebounds while converting more than 89 percent (105-of-118) from the free throw line.
The Runnin' Bulldogs got off to a good start inside in the first half, sinking four of their first five attempts in the paint, and taking an early 11-8 lead on a layup by Aholode at the 14:18 mark. Colorado quickly answered with a 7-0 run, claiming a 15-11 advantage on a Stalzer trey before McBride countered with a triple of his own moments later.
Davis put Gardner-Webb back in front, 17-16, just over a minute later, knocking down a long trey with 10:09 left in the half. The Buffaloes answered with a 6-1 spurt, retaking the lead at 22-18 following a Gordon throw down at the 8:20 mark.
Gardner-Webb kept battling, responding with back-to-back threes from Burbage and Davis to knot the score at 24-24 with 7:34 to go. The teams would trade buckets over the next several minutes, with Strange knocking down a trey at the 4:38 mark to even the tally at 31-31.
Colorado quickly responded with a 13-5 run over the remaining four minutes of the half, opening its largest lead of the period at 44-36 heading into the break. The Buffaloes carried the momentum into the second half, stretching the margin to 53-38 with a 9-2 spurt that was capped by a three-point play from Tre'Shaun Fletcher at the 18:41 mark.
Gardner-Webb kept fighting, closing the gap to single digits on several occasions but were unable to stop Colorado's inside game down the stretch, as the Buffaloes scored 32 of their 43 second-half points in the paint compared to a total of 30 for the Runnin' Bulldogs on the night.
The Runnin' Bulldogs battled until the final buzzer, cutting the lead to 10 at the 6:22 and 4:40 marks on three-pointers by Dylan Poston (Myrtle Beach, S.C.), before Burbage equaled the final margin of 87-78 with a last-second trey.
Gardner-Webb is expected to return six letter-winners from this year's squad, including rising seniors Herve Aholode (Cotonou, Benin), Isaiah Ivey (Georgetown, Ky.), McBride, Poston, and Burbage.
