HIGH POINT, N.C. — William & Mary built up a 17-point lead by halftime and the High Point University men’s basketball team couldn’t recover, taking an 83-61 loss to the Tribe on Saturday night at the Millis Center. Graduate student Allan Chaney picked up his first collegiate double-double with 22 points and 10 rebounds in the loss.
“William & Mary is a quality opponent and we had a bad night, offensively,” said HPU head coach Scott Cherry. “Shots that usually go in didn’t and [William & Mary was] getting rebounds. We won a couple games to start the season but that doesn’t turn freshmen and sophomores into juniors and seniors. We have a young team and I still feel really good about the guys we have. We just need to keep working and perform better.”
Chaney shot 7-for-14 from the floor and 8-for-8 from the free-throw line on the way to his first collegiate 20-point game. He was the only HPU player to finish in double-digits for rebounds (10). Freshman Adam Weary posted his second double-digit scoring performance, getting 11 points off the bench.
Junior forward Tim Rusthoven led William & Mary on the night with 23 points and nine rebounds while Marcus Thornton scored 20 points. Rusthoven went 8-for-9 from the floor and Thornton had a game-high five assists.
Neither team got off to a strong start, offensively, and with 9:55 remaining in the opening period William & Mary held a slim 11-10 lead following a bucket by Chaney. He was the only HPU player with multiple baskets in the early going.
The Panthers’ offensive struggles allowed the Tribe to break away with a 21-3 scoring run after the 10-minute mark in the first half. Rusthoven scored seven of his 11 first-half points on the run, which put the Tribe ahead by 19 (32-13) with 2:14 remaining. Weary ended it with a three-pointer. A putback dunk by Chaney sent High Point into the locker room down 37-20 at the half.
The HPU offense improved slightly in the second half as the Panthers scored 41 points on 33.3 percent shooting, but the Panthers never made a significant dent in William & Mary’s lead. Chaney scored 14 points and pulled in eight rebounds in the second half despite playing with four fouls for the last 6:30. Rusthoven and Thornton were both in double-digits in scoring in the second half.
Shooting and rebounding was the difference as William & Mary shot 55.3 percent from the floor and grabbed 33 defensive rebounds. By contrast, HPU shot 31.0 percent and had 19 defensive boards. The Panthers went just 2-for-22 from three-point range.
High Point dropped to 2-1 on the season while William & Mary improved to 3-0.
The Panthers will play their second-straight home game on Wednesday, Nov. 21, when they welcome St. Andrew’s Presbyterian to the Millis Center. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.