Rock Hill, S.C. – In a game that featured eight ties and 11 lead changes, Lucas Steiber drilled a three-point basket with 2.7 seconds remaining to lift Gardner-Webb to a 65-64 victory over rival Winthrop in men's basketball action Saturday afternoon inside the Winthrop Coliseum.

The victory is the Runnin' Bulldogs third consecutive conference win and improves their record to 16-15 overall and 11-5 in league play.

It was the fourth series sweep of a Big South opponent for Gardner-Webb this season and the first against Winthrop since the 2013-14 campaign.

"Winning here (Winthrop Coliseum) is hard," said Gardner-Webb head coach Tim Craft, whose team will be the No.3 seed in next week's Big South Tournament. "Winning on the road is hard period, but this place is especially tough. Credit Winthrop, who played such tough defense on us in the second half. Everything was a struggle trying to score. On our last possession, we got the rebound with about 13 seconds and Julian Soumaoro got a good look in transition that Ademide Badmus tipped out to Lucas (Steiber) who is about the hottest three-point shooter in the Big South right now. Everyone on the team was so happy for Lucas when hit the shot. He's beloved by all his teammates."

Soumaoro made three, three-point baskets and tallied 13 points to lead all Gardner-Webb scorers.  Caleb Robinson and Isiah Richards added 11 points apiece while Robinson grabbed a team-high seven rebounds. Steiber tallied six points on 2-5 three-point shooting.

The Runnin' Bulldogs, who shot 40% (24-60) in the game, connected on 30% (7-23) from behind the three-point arc and 53% (10-19) from the free throw line.

Gardner-Webb, which trailed 19-8 in the opening half, used a 16-2 run over a 4:08 span to take a 36-31 lead into the locker room at intermission. The Dawgs held the Eagles without a field goal over the final 4:59 of the first half.

Gardner-Webb outscored Winthrop 34-24 in the paint and held a slight 41-36 advantage on the glass.

Michael Anumba scored a game-high 16 points and grabbed six rebounds while Kelton Talford added 15 points and eight boards for Winthrop. Kasen Harrison tallied 10 points for the Eagles who dropped their second consecutive contest and fell to 18-14 and 8-8.

Up Next
Gardner Webb will open Big South Tournament play as the No.3 seed and face No.6 Presbyterian at 8PM on Friday 3/8 at the Qubein Center on the campus of High Point University.