BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. ? After battling back from a 10-point first-half deficit, the Presbyterian College men's basketball team took the lead in the second half, but Gardner-Webb hit its free throws down the stretch, pulling off a 78-72 victory over the Blue Hose.
PC falls to 11-17 on the season and 8-9 in Big South play. The Bulldogs improve to 12-16 overall and 8-9 against conference competition.
Leading the way for the Blue Hose was sophomore Al'Lonzo Coleman with 24 points and eight rebounds. Fellow sophomore Josh Johnson hit for 11 points while Chase Holmes and Bryan Bostic each accounted for double-digit scoring with 10 points apiece.
Johnson's free throws at the 19:05 mark in the second half gave the Blue Hose their first lead of the contest. The teams would trade baskets for the next three minutes before Johnson re-took the lead on a fast break lay-up with 16:57 to play.
After a turnover by Nate Blank, Holmes canned a jumper in the paint for a three-point lead, 49-46. Jonathan Moore hit a free throw with 14:41 to play to put the home squad up one. However, Aaron Gibbs hit a turnaround shot to re-take the lead, 51-50. Johnson then got a pass from Coleman for a fast break lay-up, giving PC a three-point edge, 53-50.
With just under eight minutes to play, Auryn MacMillan's lay-up pulled the home team within one, 61-60. Just 27 seconds later, the Bulldogs took the lead for good on another shot in the paint.
In the first half, the Blue Hose trailed by seven in the early going, 13-6, but head coach Gregg Nibert's team cut the deficit to one with 11:11 to go on two charity tosses by Josh Johnson.
After the Bulldogs increased their advantage to 10 at the 6:33 mark only to see PC battle back, pulling within one just prior to the break. Down by three with under a minute to play, Aaron Gibbs grabbed a rebound off Nate Blank's errant shot with 13 seconds to go. The Blue Hose pushed the ball up court and Bostic was fouled by Matt Maden with seven seconds remaining. Bostic calmly stepped to the line and canned both attempts, making the score 42-41. Takayo Siddle misfired on a three-point shot at the buzzer, rendering the score the same heading into the second half.
For the game, PC managed to score 38 points in the paint to 37 for Gardner-Webb. The Blue Hose had 12 second-chance points versus nine for the Bulldogs. GWU outscored PC by nine off the bench.
PC hit 23-of-54 shots from the floor for 42.6 percent for the game while the Bulldogs hit 27-of-60 for 45 percent.
Gibbs contributed a solid effort of eight points and seven rebounds off the bench. He also contributed a steal in 25 minutes of play.
The Blue Hose return to action Saturday evening in the season finale. It is a home contest against UNC Asheville. The tip is slated for 7 p.m. Prior to the game, the Blue Hose will honor their two seniors, Bryan Bostic and Travis Sligh.
