BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. – Senior guard DQ Nicholas scored a team-high 16 points and dished out three assists while backcourt mate Julian Soumaoro added 14 points, four rebounds, four assists and hit four clutch free-throws in the closing 19 seconds as Gardner-Webb came from 18-points down in the opening half to defeat rival Winthrop 79-74 in men's basketball action Saturday afternoon inside Paul Porter Arena.

The victory is the Runnin' Bulldogs third consecutive conference win and improves their record to 8-12 overall and 3-2 in league play.

Gardner-Webb, which trailed 38-20 with 6:05 to play in the first half and 45-30 at intermission, also got strong second-half performances from a quartet of players. Caleb Robinson, who finished with 11 points and five rebounds before fouling out with 1:06 remaining was instrumental in the second-half comeback along with Ademide Badmus (nine points, six rebounds), Lucas Steiber (nine points, including two key three-point shots) and Isiah Richards (eight points and four rebounds).

The Runnin' Bulldogs, who shot 49.1 percent in the game, outscored Winthrop 49-29 over the final 20 minutes. The Eagles, who shot 9-14 from behind the three-point line in the first half, were 0-5 after intermission.

"There were four threes' (point shots) that they made in the first half that we were letting certain guys shoot as part of our game plan," said Gardner-Webb head coach Tim Craft. "The thing that hurt us was (Sin 'Cere) McMahon hit four of them. That was not part of the plan. We also turned the ball over uncharacteristically too much in the first half.
"In the second half we did a better job," added Craft. "We only turned the ball over three times, and we created a bunch of turnovers (eight). Our activity playing some zone (defense) in the second half helped. This was the ultimate find a way to win."

Senior forward Kelton Talford scored a game-high 20 points and grabbed nine rebounds for Winthrop which had four players in double figures on the day. McMahon added 14 points, including 4-6 from behind the arch. Kasen Harrison tallied 11 points and Nick Johnson chipped in 10 points for the Eagles who drop their second consecutive contest and fall to 13-8 and 4-2. Winthrop shot 41.9% percent on the day.  

Gardner-Webb, which hit 6-of-21 (28%) from deep, outscored Winthrop 40-18 in the paint. The Eagles converted 29 of 38 shots from the charity stripe while the 'Dawgs were 21-29
 The 'Runnin Bulldogs held a slight 31-30 advantage on the glass.

Overall, Craft is pleased with the direction his team his heading following its third-straight win.

"I feel great about our team," said Craft. "We've been through a lot thus far this season and our leadership in the locker room has just kept things together through any adversity. We continue to believe in this process of becoming the best team we can become."
 
Up Next
Gardner Webb will play on the road Wednesday evening at Longwood with a 7PM tip-off in the brand new Joan Perry Brock Center.