The Blue Hose outscored the Runnin' Bulldogs, 35-27, in the second half to rally to within five with under a minute to play, but could not overcome the 16-point halftime deficit, as Gardner-Webb survived the Presbyterian College men's basketball team, 61-53, in Big South action Thursday evening in Boiling Springs, N.C.

Stat of the Game

Gardner-Webb shot 45.7% for the game, with PC shooting 32.1%.  PC and GWU both hit four three-pointers, with the Blue Hose recording all four in the second half.  The Blue Hose held the rebounding edge, 36-32, and one more turnover, 13-12.

Blue Hose Player of the Game

Davon Bell led the Blue Hose on offense with 16 points, followed by Reggie Dillard with 13.  Armel TeTe pulled down a career-high 14 rebounds.  D.J. Laster led Gardner-Webb with 24 points.

How It Happened

The Blue Hose jumped out to an 8-2 lead early in the first half, helped by back to back layups from Ruben Arroyo.  With PC leading 10-5, 16:03, Gardner-Webb scored 16 in a row to make it 21-10, 8:12 on the clock.  The Blue Hose outscored GWU, 8-5 over the next three and a half minutes to cut the margin to eight, 18-26., 4:42 left.  That would be it for PC as the Bulldogs closed the half with eight unanswered to head to the locker room leading 34-18.

PC and GWU matched point for point for much of the second half, with PC managing to use a small 4-0 run to cut the deficit to 14, 31-45, 9:14 left.  With the Bulldogs up again by 18, PC made it a 12-point game, 42-54, at the five minute mark, capped by a JC Younger three-pointer.  It was the start of a 17-4 run by the Blue Hose that saw the visitors cut the margin to five, 53-58, 1:29 left.  Gardner-Webb hit three of four free throws and held PC scoreless the final minute and a half to survive, 61-53.

Notables

• - Armel pulled down a career-high 14 rebounds, it was the second time this season a Blue Hose player has posted double-digit rebounds in a game.

For the Record

PC drops to 8-12 overall and 1-6 in the league, while Gardner-Webb improves to 10-10, 5-2.

Up Next

PC is home Sunday, Jan. 21, against Winthrop.  Tip-off is 4 p.m.

How to follow

Fans can follow at www.GoBlueHose.com, and @BlueHoseHoops.  The game can be viewed live on www.BigSouthSports.com.