HPU WBB Travels To Gardner-Webb On Saturday

HIGH POINT, N.C. – The High Point University women’s basketball team heads south to Gardner-Webb on Saturday for a showdown with the Runnin’ Bulldogs.

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The Panthers (3-10, 2-2) have won five straight against the Runnin’ Bulldogs (8-6, 2-2) including three victories in the series last season.

LAST TIME OUT
• The Panthers led the Bucs 54-44 with eight minutes to play, however CSU stormed back with a 20-8 run to close out the game and earn a 64-62 road victory.
• Junior Kaylah Keys had a stellar performance in the contest racking up 24 points while posting a career-high seven steals. The Southaven, Miss. native scored 15 of the team’s 29 first-half points and added a team-best three assists for the game.
• Freshman Shea Morgan came off the bench to tally nine points on 4-of-7 shooting and pulled down five boards in 31 minutes.
• Freshman Haleigh Hatfield paced the Purple & White with seven rebounds on the night.
• Point guards freshman Kyrie’ Chandler and sophomore Kat Harris combined for 14 points with each registering seven points.
• HPU trailed 21-10 after the first quarter. The team, then, outscored CSU 44-23 over the next 22 minutes before the game-ending run.

Keys’ Climb
• Junior Kaylah Keys is the second-highest active scorer in the Big South Conference behind Liberty’s Ashley Rininger.
• Keys is fifth on HPU’s Division I scoring list with 1,237 points in just two-plus seasons.
• The Southaven, Miss. native is second all-time at HPU with 158 3-pointers made in her career. Her 158 made 3’s are fifth among third-year players nationally.

Youth is Served
• HPU’s seven freshmen are logging 62 percent of the team’s minutes and are scoring 53 percent of HPU points and grabbing 61 percent of the squads steals this season.
• With her bucket against CSU, Lindsey Edwards became the first of the freshmen to score 100 points this season.

They’re Free
• HPU is second in the league shooting 72 percent at the line. Kat Harris (.895) and Kaylah Keys (.822) are the top-two in the league. Meanwhile, Shea Morgan is 13-for-14 on the year.

Scouting the Runnin’ Bulldogs
• The Runnin’ Bulldogs opened the season 5-1 with wins over North Carolina, UNCG and preseason favorite Liberty. However, the team is just 3-5 since then with loses to Winthrop and Coastal Carolina in Big South play.
• GWU ended a four-game Division I losing streak on Monday night with a dominant 70-35 triumph over Campbell in Gore Arena. The squad went 8-of-16 from beyond the arc while holding the Camels to 25 percent shooting from the floor in the win.
• Seniors Candace Brown and Olivia Parker provide leadership for GWU, while filling the box score. Parker, a forward, is fourth in the league in scoring (14.4 ppg) and is first in rebounding (9.4 rpg). Meanwhile, Brown is fifth in scoring (13.9 ppg).
• The sophomore duo of Tierra Huntsman (11.1 ppg) and Alexus Hill (11.0 ppg) are also scoring in double figures for GWU. Huntsman is the team’s top shooter (.397 3-PT percentage).

All-Time Series
• The Panthers own a 17-10 edge in the series between the two programs. However, in Big South contests, HPU’s lead is just 8-7.
• Including three wins over the Runnin’ Bulldogs last season, the Purple & White have won five straight and are 6-1 under DeUnna Hendrix.

Last Time They Met
• The Panthers swept the three games against Gardner-Webb with a 72-57 win at home and a 74-58 win on the road before a 56-53 win in the Big South semifinals.
• Junior Kaylah Keys is scoring 18.6 ppg in five career meetings with GWU, all wins.

Next Up
The Panthers return home on Tuesday, Jan. 12 to host the Chanticleers of Coastal Carolina for the final time as Big South foes.