High Point MBB Hosts Presbyterian Thursday

High Point vs. Presbyterian

WHEN: Thursday, January 10 | 7 p.m.
WHERE: High Point, N.C. | Millis Center
SERIES RECORD: 27th meeting, HPU leads, 17-9
LIVE STATS: Click Here
AUDIO: High Point Panther Radio Network
VIDEO: ESPN+
GAME NOTES: Click Here

HIGH POINT, N.C. — The High Point University men’s basketball team (8-7, 1-0 Big South) opens its home portion of the Big South schedule Thursday (Jan. 10) as it plays host to Presbyterian (9-7, 1-0). Tip-off at the Millis Center is set for 7 p.m. and will be broadcast on ESPN+. The game is the second contest of a doubleheader, as the HPU women also face off against Presbyterian at 4 p.m.

PAW PRINTS
• This will be the 27th all-time meeting between the two programs, with the Panthers leading the series, 17-9. The two teams split the season series in 2017-18 and HPU has won nine out of the last 10 meetings.
• This will be the first time HPU head coach Tubby Smith has faced Presbyterian in his head coaching career.
• The Panthers are coming off of a 51-50 win at Charleston Southern in their Big South opener on Saturday evening (Jan. 5) in North Charleston, S.C.
• After being led in scoring by guards in 13 of its previous 14 games, High Point was led by senior forward Jordan Whitehead with 11 points and junior forward 10 Cliff Thomas Jr. added 10 off the bench.
• Whitehead recorded his first-career double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds. It was only the second time in his career he had grabbed double-digit rebounds.
• Whitehead’s double-double was the second of the season for the Panthers, after senior Ricky Madison tallied 11 points and 10 rebounds at The Citadel on Nov. 27, 2018.
• Thomas Jr. grabbed six rebounds and swatted a career-high four blocks in addition to his 10 points off the bench at CSU. In two games this season, he is averaging 9.5 points and 6.5 rebounds per game. Thomas Jr. missed the first 13 games due to an injury.
• Freshman Rob Peterson III has seen an uptick in minutes the past few games and his production has subsequently picked up as well. In his first 11 appearances, he averaged 7.6 minutes, 1.5 points and 1.3 rebounds. In his last three games, he has 17.3 minutes, 6.0 points and 4.7 rebounds. Against Charleston Southern, he played the last 17 minutes of the game and scored seven points and grabbed a season-high six rebounds.
• High Point improved to 12-8 in conference openers since joining the Big South in the 1999-2000 season.

HISTORY vs. PRESBYTERIAN
High Point is 17-9 all-time against the Blue Hose, winning nine out of the last 10 meetings between the two sides. Both teams won at home last season, with Presbyterian’s 69-62 win on Feb. 15, 2018 in Clinton, S.C., breaking a nine-game winning streak for the Panthers in the series.

HISTORY vs. OPPONENTS FROM SOUTH CAROLINA

High Point has complied a 82-100 (.451) record all-time against Division I programs hailing from the Palmetto State. HPU’s most common opponents are Winthrop (14-29), Charleston Southern (22-18) and Coastal Carolina (16-21). High Point is 53-56 against Big South programs from South Carolina and 29-44 against the rest of the state’s Div. I teams. The Panthers are 1-2 this season against teams from South Carolina, winning at Charleston Southern, but falling to Wofford and The Citadel.

TUBBY SMITH vs. PRESBYTERIAN
HPU head coach Tubby Smith will face the Blue Hose for the first time in his head coaching career.

A LOOK AT THE BLUE HOSE
Presbyterian is 9-7 on the season and 1-0 in Big South play after pulling out a 64-61 win over USC Upstate on Saturday (Jan. 5) in Clinton, S.C. Adam Flager leads the Blue Hose with 15.3 points per game, while Francois Lewis is second with 14.7 points per contest. Cory Hightower leads PC with 6.6 rebounds per game.

NEXT UP
The Panthers will continue Big South play at Winthrop on Saturday (Jan. 12). Tip-off inside the Winthrop Coliseum is set for 2 p.m. and the game will be broadcast on ESPN3.