ASHEVILLE, N.C. – No. 3 seed Winthrop held off a strong effort from No. 6 seed Gardner-Webb for a 72-68 win in the Big South Men's Basketball Championship quarterfinals Thursday afternoon.

Gardner-Webb (14-18) held a 42-40 with 13:33 left in the game after a David Efianayi drive and bucket, but Winthrop's Anders Broman went on a personal 7-0 run to give the Eagles the lead for good. Winthrop (19-11) pulled in front by as many as nine down the stretch, but Gardner-Webb stuck around and made a push in the final minute before falling short.

The Runnin' Bulldogs got 20 points from Liam O'Reilly, 16 from Efianayi and 11 from DJ Laster in the season finale. Jaheam Cornwall added nine points from his point guard spot.

The Runnin' Bulldogs could not keep up from three-point range in the second half, making just 3-of-13 in the final 20 minutes (23.1) percent after an efficient opening half from that range (4-of-6). The Eagles took advantage of 16 Gardner-Webb turnovers, turning those miscues into 21 points and a +13 edge in that category.

Gardner-Webb fell behind 11-2 early in the first half, but stormed back to lead by as many as five points late in the first half. Winthrop rallied as well, and the two teams were deadlocked, 32-32 at intermission.

Winthrop got a quick three out of the break from Anders Broman to go up 35-32 and led 37-34 by the 15:52 media timeout.

Two free throws by Efianayi and a follow shot from Jenkins put Gardner-Webb back on top with 15:02 left, but Kyle Zunic drained his third long ball of the game to put the Eagles up 40-38 one possession later.

Justin Jenkins drove for a layup to tie the score with 14:04 to play and Efianayi drove for a layup to put Gardner-Webb up 42-40. A three from Anders Broman gave Winthrop the lead right back, as the pace of the game quickened. The elder Broman got open again from the top of the key, and converted a critical four-point play with 12:41 left in the game to put Winthrop up 47-42 – the highlight of his personal 7-0 run.

O'Reilly stymied that run with a three of his own, but Zunic drove to keep the Eagles' offense clicking with a layup and a 49-45 edge.

Efianayi got free on an inbounds play with 9:59 left and was fouled, sinking a pair of free throws to cut the lead to 51-49, but Adam Pickett stepped into a transition three after a scramble to put Winthrop up 54-49 with 8:18 left in the game, the Eagles' fifth trey of the second half.

Gardner-Webb ran into a drought midway through half that lasted nearly three minutes, allowing Winthrop to hold and add to its lead.

Gardner-Webb didn't let the Eagles get the lead into double figures, and a driving layup from Efianayi cut the lead back to 64-59 with 2:26 to play in the game. Cooks drove and spun for a layup with 1:27 left to push the lead back to seven, but Gardner-Webb had one more rally left.

The Runnin' Bulldogs got a needed stop with 41.6 seconds remaining, and O'Reilly dropped in two free throws with 37.4 seconds left to cut the lead to 66-61. Gardner-Webb went to a full-court press for a quick turnover with 35.7 ticks remaining. A set play for Efianayi resulted in a layup for a 66-63 score with 33 seconds left and the 'Dogs fouled Anders Broman with 21.2 seconds left.

Broman made both to get the Winthrop lead back to two possessions, but O'Reilly streaked down the lane for a layup with 14.9 seconds left – cutting it back to three points, 68-65.

Another Gardner-Webb foul with 11.8 seconds left sent Bjorn Broman to the line, and the younger Broman was true on both his chances for a 70-65 advantage.

O'Reilly connected on a leaner from 20 feet with 3.5 seconds left to cut the lead to 70-68, but Winthrop's Bjorn Broman made two free throws on the other end – and another late shot from long range was off the mark for the Runnin' Bulldogs near the horn.

Gardner-Webb shot 43.6 percent for the game (24-of-55) and were 7-of-19 from long range (36.8 percent). GWU also outworked Winthrop on the backboards, holding a 37-28 rebounding edge, but 16 turnovers were costly in the game.

In addition to the starting quartet, Gardner-Webb got six points each from Eric Jamison and Jenkins.

Winthrop finished 12-of-32 from long distance (37.5 percent), making six in each half. Anders Broman (15 points), Pickett (15 points) and Zunic (13 points) led the way. Cooks, the Big South Player of the Year, was limited to 11 points on 5-of-16 shooting, but blocked four shots and made his mark late in the game offensively with key baskets.

The Eagles shot 40.7 percent for the game (22-of-54).

Gardner-Webb's season is complete. Winthrop advances to play No. 2 seed Radford on Friday at 6:00 pm in the first semifinal.