BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. – Gardner-Webb men's basketball hits the road for its next conference contest, traveling to the Qubein Center to face league-leading High Point on Wednesday evening.
The Runnin' Bulldogs come into the contest with a 2-15 overall record, including 0-2 in Big South play. Gardner-Webb continues to search for its first Division I win of the season after allowing double-digit leads in the last two games slip away.
Freshman sensation Spence Sims leads the Runnin' Bulldogs in scoring with 11.4. Sims is shooting .506 from behind the arc and scored a career-high 29 points in a tough loss to Winthrop on January 3. For his efforts, Sims has garnered Big South Freshman of the Week on five occasions.
Forward Jacob Hogarth is second on the team with 10.6 points per game to go along with a team-leading 7.4 rebounds, his best game coming against Brevard where he posted 23 points and 23 rebounds. Guard Jacob Hudson is the only other player for the Dawgs to average double digits in scoring, pouring in 10.1 points per contest.
As a team, Gardner-Webb shoots .421 from the field, including .315 from distance and .713 from the charity stripe. The Runnin' Bulldogs pull down 31.6 rebounds per game while averaging 70.5 points per contest. Defensively, GWU garners 2.6 blocks per game.
High Point comes into the contest with a 14-3 overall record and 2-0 in league play. The Panthers are currently riding a 6-game win streak, including Big South wins over UNC Asheville and Longwood. High Point holds a 10-1 record at home on the season with its only loss coming December 3 versus Southern Illinois.
The Panthers average just under 94 points per game while holding opponents to 68.9 points per contest. As a team, HPU shoots .528, including .386 from distance. High Point is outrebounding its opponents by a margin of 35.5-31.9.
Cam'Ron Fletcher leads all scorers with 16.5 points per game while shooting .571 from the field. Fletcher is also the team leader in rebounds with 7.8 per game. Rob Martin and Terry Anderson pitch in 10.9 and 10.8 points per game, respectively.
Wednesday's game will mark the 39th overall meeting between the two schools with High Point winning the previous five. Gardner-Webb's last win came on January 28, 2023, an 86-58 win at Paul Porter Arena. Tip for the Big South matchup is slated for 7 p.m.
