HPU Men’s Basketball’s Second Half Lead Slips Away at Charleston Southern

Site: Charleston, S.C. (Buccaneer Field House)
Score: Charleston Southern 66, High Point 63
Records: CSU (13-13, 7-7 Big South), HPU (7-19, 4-9 Big South)
Next HPU Event: Saturday, Feb. 15 — vs USC Upstate (Millis Center), 7 p.m.

CHARLESTON, S.C. – John-Michael Wright hit a game-tying three pointer with nine seconds left in regulation for the High Point University men’s basketball team but Charleston Southern’s Phlandrous Fleming Jr. hit a three-pointer of his own with two seconds on the clock in a 66-63 heartbreaker on Thursday (Feb. 13) evening.

John-Michael Wright hit a three-pointer to start the second half that followed with a Caden Sanchez layup to give HPU a 31-27 lead and capped off a 15-2 run. The Panthers would not relinquish the lead until the 5:20 mark in which there would be three additional lead changes.

Wright finished with 14 points in the second half after scoring zero in the opening period and recorded 10 rebounds – his double-double of the season.

After trailing by five in the early minutes HPU went on a 9-0 run – which included five points from Eric Coleman Jr. – to take its first lead of the night (11-7). This was followed by a Buccaneer 9-0 run of their own which shifted the lead back in the hosts favor.

CSU led by as many as nine points (25-16) in the first half but High Point battled back to make it a one-point game at the half (27-26). Coleman had a game-high 13 points after the opening stanza after going 5-9 from the floor and 2-3 from beyond the arc. Coleman finished with 15 points, tying his season high.

The Panthers led by as many as five points (52-47) at the 8:04 mark of the second half, thanks in part to shooting 48.4% in the closing period.

Sanchez finished with 14 points for his fifth double digit scoring game of the season.

The Panthers return to Millis Center on Saturday (Feb. 15) evening when they host USC Upstate at 7 p.m.