The Presbyterian College men's basketball team shot over 50% in the second half and broke open a five-point game at intermission, hitting six three-pointers in the final 20 minutes to take the 77-62 win over High Point in Big South action Saturday afternoon at Templeton Center in Clinton, S.C.  Zeb Graham led four Blue Hose in double-figures with a career-high 19 points, followed by JC Younger with 15.  PC has now won four in a row, the second most in its Division I history.  The 3-0 conference start is also its best.
 
Scoring the game
High Point used three three-pointers to help build a six-point, 15-9, lead, just under 11 minutes to go in the first half. While PC didn't hit its first basket until a Zeb Graham layup at the 9:28 mark, the Blue Hose connected on nine free throws to stay in the game.  After the team's 10^th free throw and Grahams basket, PC had trimmed the lead to three.  Add an Owen McCormack layup at 9:23 and a Sean Jenkins three-pointers, the team's first, at 8:57 and the game was tied, 17-17.  A quick four points by High Point, including an Eric Coleman three-pointer, put the visitors ahead by four, 21-17, 6:54 to go.  The Panthers added just five more points to their total the remainder of the half, with PC outscoring HPU 14-5, which included back to back JC Younger threes, to head into the locker room leading 31-26.
 
The Blue Hose opened the second half with a 10-4 run to build an 11-point, 41-30 lead, 17:11 left.  Both teams traded baskets the next several minutes, with the home team leading again by 11, 46-35, at the 12:27 mark off a Cory Hightower three-pointer.  The Panthers got on a little bit of a roll, using a 6-0 run to cut the margin to five, 41-46, 10 minutes to play.  A Graham jumper and three points from Ben Drake over the next two minutes put PC back on top by double-digits, 51-41, 8:18 remaining. A couple of free throws by High Point made it an eight-point game under eight to play, but that would be as close as the team would get with the home team taking an 11-3 run to a 16-point, 62-46 lead 4:54 on the clock.  Younger hit his third and fourth three of the afternoon over the next minute to help the Blue Hose to an 18-point, 68-50 lead, 4:05 ticks to go.  The Blue Hose increased their lead to 20 off four unanswered late in the game, but High Point hit a three, and a jumper to cut the final margin to 15, 77-62.
 
Players of the Game
Zeb Graham led the team with 19 points, followed by JC Younger with 15, and Swan Jenkins with 11.  Cory Hightower, who scored 13 points, led the team in rebounds with nine.  Younger, Jenkins, and Graham each hit at least two three-pointers, with Younger totaling four on the afternoon.  John-Michael Wright led High Point with 15 points and seven rebounds.
 
Stats of the Game
Both teams shot in the 30s in the first half, with the Blue Hose at 31.6%, and the Panthers at 33.3%.  PC shot 52.0% in the second, marking the eighth time this season the Blue Hose have hit over 50% in the second half, and the 12^th time the team has increased its shooting percentage in the second stanza.  Presbyterian finished with 43.2% from the field, holding High Point to 39.1%. PC hit just four three-pointers in the first half, but three of those came in the final four-and-a-half minutes.  For the game PC finished with 10 threes, compared to six for the visitors. High Point out-rebounded PC, 34-31, and had five more turnovers, 14-9.  A total of 49 fouls were called in the game with PC hitting 29-of-37 from the charity stripe, and High Point 20-of-32.
 
For the Record
PC improves to 6-10 overall and 3-0 in the Big South, while High Point drops to 3-13, 0-3.
 
Notables
PC has won four in a row, the longest winning streak since the 2017 season when the team picked up five straight.  The Blue Hose have won at least four games in a row just twice in their Division I history.
The 3-0 Big South start is the best in PC's DI history.
Zeb Graham scored a career-high19 points, as well as posting a career-best six assists.  He was also a career-high nine-of-12 from the free throw line.
Sean Jenkins tied his career-high with 11 points, as well as his three three-pointers.
The 29 free throws made were second in the PC DI record book, the 37 attempts were fourth
 
Up Next
The Blue Hose are on the road for their next contest, travelling to Longwood, Jan. 16, for a 7 p.m., contest.