BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. – Gardner-Webb defeated USC Upstate on Wednesday Night 78-66 to close out the first half of the league schedule at 5-4. The Runnin' Bulldogs put together a dominant start to the second half as they scored 22 unanswered to get the victory.
Each team got their first points off three-pointers showing each team's range from deep. GWU converted four of their attempts with USC Upstate hitting on five shots from deep. Jordan Gainey finished the first half with 12 points.
Caleb Robinson tallied 14 before the break as he went 4-5 from the floor including a perfect 5-5 from the line. His points helped give GWU the lead back for the final third of the first half. Gardner-Webb led by as many as seven and held a 32-31 into the break.
Coming out of halftime, the Runnin' Bulldogs exploded. They broke off the first 22 points of the second half and held the Spartans scoreless for the first seven-and-a-half minutes of it.
The Spartans tried to cut back into the Bulldogs' advantage but were never able to bring it closer than a dozen near the end of the game.
DQ Nicholas and
Anthony Selden had emphatic highlight reel dunks in second half to reenergize the crowd through the finish. Selden had a solo finish over two defenders at the start of the second half and had an alley-oop from Nicholas later in the half. Nicholas rose above the rim to finish with two hands as he drove to the rack on the next possession.
Robinson finished the game with a season-high 22 points with Nicholas tying his as he poured in 20. Robinson went a perfect 9-9 from the charity stripe to add to his 6-9 performance on the floor. Nicholas also shot well as he went 8-10. Soumaoro added 14 as he hit on four triples during the evening.
Gardner-Webb shot their best game from the floor in a D1 game this season as well as they went 27-45 (60%). They also shot 7-14 (50%) from deep, tying their best percentage of the year from behind the arc. The Runnin' Bulldogs had 15 of their makes come off assists with Nicholas leading the team with six and Soumaoro adding five.
The teams were unable to create a big advantage on the boards as GWU pulled down 24 to Upstate's 23.
Kareem Reid had the team-high with five. However, within the paint, Gardner-Webb finished with a 36-22 edge to show for their physicality.
On the defensive end, Nicholas tied his career high with three steals. The Spartans turned the ball over 16 times to GWU's 11 leading to the 'Dogs having a 22-10 advantage in points off turnovers.
Next up for Gardner-Webb is a home game against High Point (2-7) on Saturday, January 28 with a tipoff slated for 2:00 p.m. The last time these two teams met, GWU came away with an 80-73 win on the road on New Year's Eve.
