The Presbyterian College men's basketball team outscored Gardner-Webb, 31-8, in the final 10 minutes of the first half and the opening three of the second to build a double-digit lead, which helped the Blue Hose survive a late Runnin' Bulldog rally and take the 65-61 win in Big South action Thursday evening at the Templeton Center.  Chris Martin scored a career-high 25 points in the win.
 
Scoring the game
Trailing by three early in the first half, Gardner-Webb rallied with a 10-2 run, capped by back to back three-pointers, to take a five-point lead, 12-7, 10:15 to go. Two three-pointers from PC, from Cory Hightower and Chris Martin, pushed the Blue Hose ahead by one, 13-12, 8:13 on the clock. It was the start of an 11-0 run to give PC an 18-12 lead, 7:19 on the clock. After Gardner-Webb responded with five unanswered, JC Younger hit his second three-pointer of the game as part of five straight to make it a six-point game again, 23-17, 4:17 left. Martin's third three-pointers and a Hightower Layup gave PC its largest lead of the game at 10, 28-18, 2:43 on the clock. Eric Jamison, Jr., hit a layup and added a free throw in the final minute to cut the PC lead to seven at the break, 28-21.
 
The Blue Hose scored 10 straight to open the second half and opened up a 17-point, 38-21 lead, 16:51 to go in the game. Kareem Reid snapped the scoring drought for GWU with a layup at 16:32. Gardner-Webb chipped away at the PC lead over the next four minutes, using three three-pointers during that span to cut the lead to 10, 32-42, 12:43 left. JC Younger hit his third three-pointer of the night at 10:52 to give PC a 15-point lead.  Gardner-Webb rallied with nine straight, highlighted by threes from Nate Johnson and Eric Jamison, Jr., to cut the margin to just single digits, 43-49, 8:59 on the clock. The Blue Hose added a layup and three free throws to take the lead to nine but it was Gardner-Webb with the next eight of game's next 10 points to make it a three-point game, 53-56, 4:26 on the clock.  A minute later the Blue Hose put together four points to build a seven-point lead, with just over three to play. Trailing by four with 12 seconds to go, Gardner-Webb was fouled and hit two free throws to cut the lead to two, 61-63. That would be as close as the Bulldogs would get as Martin hit two free throws with 11 seconds left to seal the four-point, 65-61 win.
 
Players of the Game
Chris Martin had a strong first half with 11 points and four rebounds, helped by a three-for-three effort from the perimeter. He only improved in the second, scoring another 14 points to finish with a career-high 25 points. Michael Isler and Owen McCormack led the rebounding effort with seven boards apiece. Eric Jamison, Jr., paced GWU with 13 points, followed by Nate Johnson and Kareem Reid with seven rebounds each.
 
Stats of the Game
The Blue Hose hit six three-pointers in the first half, with Gardner-Webb recording just three.  In total, PC outscored GWU 21-8 in the final 10 minutes of the first half.  The Bulldogs were held to 27.6% shooting from the field in the first half, while PC shot 43.5%. PC was consistent in the second half to finish the night shooting 40.8%.  Gardner-Webb shot 46.2% in the second, ending the night with 36.4%.  The Blue Hose hit just one three-pointer in the second for seven on the night, while GWU hit six in the second to finish with nine.  PC held the rebounding advantage, 40-28, and had seven more turnovers, 18-11. Gardner-Webb capitalized on the turnovers with a 21-10 margin in points off the miscues.
 
For the Record
PC improves to 9-15 overall and 6-5 in the Big South, while Gardner-Webb drops to 8-14, 4-6.
 
Notables
Chris Martin scored a career-high 25 points.
Chris Martin recorded a career-best three three-pointers, as well as eight free throws.
 
Up Next
The Blue host head to Campbell Saturday, Feb. 8, for a 4:30 p.m., contest that airs live on WPCC and ESPN+.