CANCUN, Mexico – Gardner-Webb jumped out to a big first half lead and held off a late charge from Northern Colorado to take a 67-62 win in the championship game of the 2019 Cancun Challenge Mayan Division.
 
Eric Jamison tied a career-high 21 points and pulled down 11 rebounds to lead Gardner-Webb (2-5) to the title. The Runnin' Bulldogs now have five wins in the event and two trophies in two trips – also winning the Mayan Division title in 2012.
 
Nate Johnson added 13 points on efficient 4-of-6 shooting and Jose Perez supplied 12 points, eight rebounds and three assists for the victorious squad from Boiling Springs, N.C.
 
Kareem Reid finished with eight points, five rebounds and four blocked shots off the bench.
 
Gardner-Webb ran out to a 35-21 lead by halftime, bolstered by a 24-10 edge in the paint and eight points each from Jamison and Johnson. Both Reid and Dufeal protected the rim on the defensive end, blocking two shots each in the first 20 minutes.
 
Northern Colorado was ice cold early on, making just 8-of-32 shots in the opening period to fall behind (25.0 percent).
 
The Runnin' Bulldogs kept the pressure on to start the second half, going on a 14-5 run to start the second half. The lead grew to 23 points, 49-26, on Reid's layup with 15:35 to go and Gardner-Webb was cruising.
 
The Bears (3-4) finally found their range from the three-point arc, going on a 9-0 run that got the lead down to 49-35 on Trent Harris' trey with 12:45 to play. 
 
That sparked a larger 33-11 run that eventually trimmed the once comfortable margin all the way down to one point, 60-59, on a Jonah Radebaugh layup with 2:23 to play. Jamison stepped up at a critical moment, however, drilling a clutch three-pointer of a Perez assist to give Gardner-Webb a 63-59 lead with 1:52 to play.
 
Northern Colorado missed on its next possession and Perez secured the rebound, but Gardner-Webb couldn't score on the other end despite an offensive rebound and second chance. The 'Dogs were able to melt valuable time off the clock, but a steal and three-pointer by Harris with 25.4 seconds left cut the lead back to one point.
 
The Bears had only five team fouls at that point and had to foul twice to send Gardner-Webb to the line with 15.3 seconds to play. Johnson calmly sank both to give the Runnin' Bulldogs a 65-62 advantage.
 
A miss from deep by Hume was rebounded by Perez and the sophomore from the Bronx knocked down a pair of free throws with three seconds left to ice the game.
 
Gardner-Webb shot 48.3 percent for the game (28-of-58), but just 4-of-14 from long range (28.6 percent). The Runnin' Bulldogs again held an advantage on the glass, despite allowing 15 offensive caroms to the Bears, and outscored Northern Colorado by a dominant 42-16 margin in the paint.
 
The Bears shot just 32.8 percent from the floor (21-of-64), with 35 attempts from the three-point line. Northern Colorado made 10-of-21 shots from deep in the second half, with most coming during its big run to tighten the game.
 
Harris had all 15 of his points after halftime, with Hume also scoring 15 for the Bears. Masten added 13 points, while Radebaugh scored four points, dished off seven assists and corralled 10 rebounds.
 
Gardner-Webb will return home to face Coker on December 3 in Paul Porter Arena.