HIGH POINT, N.C. --- Harold McBride (Bronx, N.Y.) and Adonis Burbage (Orlando, Fla.) each poured in 16 points, and Gardner-Webb shot 57.4 percent from the floor to pick up its first win at High Point since January 10, 2009 on Wednesday evening in Big South Conference play.
Gardner-Webb (12-12, 7-5 Big South) connected on 27-of-47 from the field, including a 16-for-24 clip in the second half, while knocking down 11-of-22 from beyond the arc. The Runnin' Bulldogs won the battle on the glass by a 27-22 margin as High Point (14-8, 7-4 Big South) posted a field goal percentage of 53.1 percent on the night.
McBride and Burbage paced five Runnin' Bulldogs in double figures with 16 points each, as Dylan Poston (Myrtle Beach, S.C.) poured in 15 points and dished out a game-high four assists. Isaiah Ivey (Georgetown, Ky.) added 12 points with a 3-for-5 night from the floor – including 2-for-3 from downtown – as Tyrell Nelson (Charlotte, N.C.) chipped in 10 points and six rebounds.
John Brown led all players with game-highs of 32 points and 13 rebounds to account for a double-double, while Adam Weary added 17 points with a 5-for-9 night from the floor. Anthony Lindauer chipped in 10 points for the Panthers.
The Runnin' Bulldogs' shooters started red hot from the floor, hitting eight of their first 10 – including a 5-for-5 clip from downtown – to open an early 22-8 lead on an Ivey trey with 13:23 to play in the first half. A Brandon Miller (Orlando, Fla.) lay-in would push the margin to 24-8 before High Point fought back with a 13-3 run, as the Panthers closed the gap to 27-21 with a Brown bucket at the 5:02 mark.
Gardner-Webb ended a more than 10-minute stretch without a field goal with under a minute to go in the half, when Poston came around the screen and buried a trey to give GWU a 32-23 lead with 41 ticks left. McBride answered a Brown put back as the clock hit zero, executing the lethal crossover to perfection and hitting from 14 feet to beat the buzzer and send Gardner-Webb into the break with a 34-25 advantage.
High Point came out firing in the second half, opening the period with a 16-10 run to trim the margin to 44-41 following six straight points from Weary – the last of which coming on a trey at the 15:10 mark. Gardner-Webb quickly countered with a 7-2 spurt, pushing the lead back to eight at 51-43 on a clutch three-ball from Ivey with 13:06 to play.
The Panthers would respond with a 15-6 surge, taking their first – and only – lead of the night on a nice look by Haisshen McIntyre to Brown that put High Point up 58-57 with 8:26 to go. McBride and the Runnin' Bulldogs refused to back down, answering with a 16-6 run to open a 73-64 lead after McBride knocked down a trey and a jumper with 2:00 left.
The Runnin' Bulldogs closed out the win from there, as McBride and Ivey combined for six critical free throws in the final seconds to secure the win and help GWU keep pace in the race for the Big South's regular season crown.
Gardner-Webb returns to the court on Saturday when the Runnin' Bulldogs host Presbyterian in Big South play in Paul Porter Arena. Tip-off is slated for 4:02 pm on ESPN3. Mike Hogewood and Ralph Patterson will have the call.
