CONWAY, S.C.- The Presbyterian College men's basketball team was eliminated from the Big South Conference Tournament on Wednesday afternoon with a 65-61 loss to Longwood at the HTC Center in Conway, S.C.
The Blue Hose finish the season 10-22 and 6-12 in conference play. The Lancers improve to 10-22 overall and 5-13 in the Big South and move on to play Charleston Southern on Friday.
Markus Terry (Johns Cree, Ga.) scored a season-high 21 points to lead the Blue Hose in the loss. DeSean Murray (Stanley, N.C.) added 18 points and pulled down a team-high 13 rebounds, while Jordan Downing (Huntersville, N.C.) scored 15 in his final game. Davon Bell (Charlotte, N.C.) dished out a team-high seven assists and had three steals.
PC was 34 percent from the floor (17-for-50), 40 percent (8-for-20) from beyond the arc, and 16-for-26 at the foul line in the game.
Shaquille Johnson led the Lancers with a game-high 25 points and 11 rebounds. Leron Fisher hit four triples en route to 16 points, while Quincy Taylor also connected on four three-pointers for 13 points.
The Lancers were 40 percent (21-for-53) from the floor, 43 percent (9-for-21) from three-point range, and 14-for-18 from the charity stripe in the win.
The teams played close for the first eight minutes of action, tying it up for the fourth time at 16-16 with 11:58 to play before PC went on 13-point scoring run to lead 29-16 with just under seven minutes to play. Johnson scored six points over the next minute and a half to help Longwood cut it to 10, 32-22 with 5:21 on the clock. Downing made one of two shots from the foul line before the Lancers went on a 9-point scoring run to cut it to two, 33-31. Murray snapped the run with a pair of free throws to send his team in the locker room up 35-31 at the half.
Terry was 3-for-4 from three-point range and 3-for-3 from the line in the first half for a team-leading 12 points, while Murray tallied 12 points in opening frame. Johnson had 15 points in the first half for the Lancers.
PC opened the second half with five straight points before the Lancers responded with six points of its own. Longwood outscored PC 11-7 over the next five and a half minutes to take the lead for the first time since early in the first half with 10:35 to play in the game. The Lancers scored 11-unanswered points before Downing nailed a three to end the three-minute scoring drought for the Blue Hose at 8:33.
The Lancers scored five straight points to extend its lead to nine points, 59-50. PC didn't go away quietly, though, as the team scored 6-unanswered points to cut it to three, 59-56, with 3:57 to play. The Blue Hose brought it to three points two more times, but Johnson went 3-for-4 from the line and Taylor made one of his two free throws to help lift the Lancers to the four-point first-round win.
