JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – Senior forward Isaiah Richards posted his fourth double-double of the season with 11 points to go along with a game-high 12 rebounds while Gardner-Webb put four players in double-figure scoring during a convincing 83-63 win over USC Upstate on Wednesday evening inside Freedom Hall Civic Center.

Graduate guard Anthonly Selden led all players with 18 points while sophomore guard Darryl Simmons II finished with 16. Junior guard Pharrell Boyogueno chipped in 14 points on 6-of-9 shooting. Guards Jacob Hudson and Shahar Lazar finished the night with nine and seven points, respectively.

Selden connected on a free throw followed by a tough layup to give Gardner-Webb an early 3-2 lead in the first period. That lead grew to 14-7 moments later as freshman guard Jacob Hudson finished with a soft finger roll on a fast break for the Runnin' Bulldogs, leading to the under-12 media timeout.

The brief hiatus did nothing to stop the momentum of GWU as the 'Dawgs ripped off the first five points, ballooning the lead to double digits, 19-7. After Upstate tallied five straight of its own, Richards knocked down his second three while Simmons leaked out for an easy layup.

However, Gardner-Webb went without a bucket for more than five minutes while Upstate outscored the Runnin' Bulldogs 11-1 over that stretch, trimming the deficit to 29-26 with less than three minutes to play before halftime. The two teams exchanged the final four points as GWU led at the break, 31-28.

Boyogueno put in a smooth layup, sparking an 8-2 run for Gardner-Webb to start the second half, pushing the lead to 39-30 just over two minutes into the frame. Lazar helped GWU extend back out to a double-digit lead, 43-33, finishing at the rim with a soft touch.

An 8-2 run over three-plus minutes of game action allowed the Spartans to pull within two possessions at 45-41, but an old-fashioned three-point play by Selden followed by a wing three from Boyogueno helped Gardner-Webb maintain a comfortable advantage with 11:21 minutes left in regulation.

Gardner-Webb started to pull away with a crucial 16-6 run, capped by a tough layup from Mann, giving the Runnin' Bulldogs their biggest lead at 73-56, heading into the final media timeout.

From that point, the game became all academic as Gardner-Webb milked the remainder of the clock on its way to the 83-63 win.

The Runnin' Bulldogs will now face top-seeded High Point on Friday, March 7 with a tip time set for 12 p.m.