Longwood hit two three-pointers in the final 30 seconds to try and erase a six-point PC lead, but it was Jordan Downing with four free throws and Markus Terry with two more to help the Presbyterian College men's basketball team preserve the 71-67 win in a wild Big South finish Wednesday night at Willett Hall in Farmville, Va.
PC improves to 6-12 overall and 2-3 in the Big South, while Longwood falls to 5-13, 1-4. The Blue Hose return home for their next game, hosting Charleston Southern in a 7:30 p.m., contest Saturday, Jan. 17. It is the second game of a doubleheader with the women's team, which faces the Lancers at 5 p.m. The Longwood men's team hosts Liberty Saturday at 5 p.m.
Leading the Blue Hose were DeSean Murray with 18 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists, for his third double-double, and William Truss, who posted 16 points and 11rebounds for his fourth double-double of the season and 14th of his career. Downing added 18, with Terry following with 10.
Quincy Taylor led Longwood with 23 points with Shaquille Johnson pulling down a team-leading nine rebounds.
PC shot 45.5% from the field, compared to 38.2% for Longwood. The Blue Hose pulled down 46 rebounds, 32 coming on the defensive end. Longwood recorded 30 boards, with its nine turnovers six less than PC's 15. The Blue Hose hit 16-of-21 free throws, with the Lancers connecting on five-of-eight. Longwood hit 10 three-pointers, while PC had five on the night.
PC shot out to a 6-0 lead early in the first half, thanks to four points from Murray. A 5-0 response by Longwood cut the lead to just one with 15:29 on the clock. What transpired the next four minutes was a back and forth battle that saw two lead changes and two ties, the last at 14-14, with 11:31 on the clock, as Kanayo Obi-Rapu knotted it up with his first three-pointer of the night.
Austin Anderson, Terry and Downing each hit threes over the next three and a half minutes as part of an 11-0 run that saw the Blue Hose take their largest lead of the game at 11, 25-14, with 7:07 on the clock.
The Lancers fought back to within two, 28-26, with a 12-3 run the next five minutes and made it a one-point deficit at the break, 34-33, after outscoring the Blue Hose 19-9 the final seven minutes. Leading the Longwood charge was Johnson who scored all of his five points of the half during the stretch run.
A 5-1 run to open the second half gave Longwood a three-point lead, 38-35, just two minutes in, before PC clawed back with six unanswered, four coming from Truss, to make it a three-point game for the Blue Hose, 41-38, 16:09 left in the game.
A three-pointer from Ryan Badowski cut the lead to one, 46-45, 13:39 left, before an Ed Drew dunk gave PC a three-point lead again, 48-45, 12:16 left on the clock.
Trailing by four, 52-48, 9:45 remaining, Longwood converted back to back Blue Hose turnovers into points, igniting a 6-0 run and leading the home team to a 54-52 lead, with 8:43 remaining.
Longwood extended its lead to four, 58-54, 5:38 on the clock, until a fastbreak lay-up by Downing and a Terry three-pointer a few seconds later made it a one-point game in favor of the Blue Hose, 59-58, 4:29 to go. After a Taylor three-pointer gave Longwood the two-point lead back Murray answered with back to back baskets to give PC a 63-61 lead, 3:17 remaining.
Leading by two with under a minute to play, Murray hit a contested floater in the paint with 36 seconds left, giving PC a four point lead, 65-61. Downing hit two free throws, after being fouled, to make it a six-point contest.
Taylor hit a three-pointer with just 15 seconds to go, making it 67-64. Downing, who was fouled on the ensuing possession, hit both free throws to take PC up by five with 13 ticks left.
Taylor hit another three with just over eight seconds left, making it a two-point game, 69-67. Terry connected on both his free throws after drawing the next foul, and helped PC seal the four-point, 71-67 win.
