• High Point held Georgia without a field goal for 14:55 in the second half
• Senior Lorenzo Cugini led HPU with a game-high 14 points and eight rebounds
• The Panthers had two potential game-tying 3-pointers rim out on the final possession
ATHENS, Ga. – The High Point University men’s basketball team (3-2) limited Georgia (2-1) to just three field goals in the second half but could not quite pull ahead in the end, falling to the Bulldogs, 49-46, on Wednesday evening inside Stegeman Coliseum.
HPU nearly erased an 11-point halftime deficit (33-22) and trailed by just one (44-43) with 1:53 to go. Georgia led by three (49-46) with 11 seconds left, but a pair of 3-pointers from junior Anthony Lindauer rimmed out on the final Panther possession as the Bulldogs escaped with the victory.
HPU’s two losses this season (at Texas Tech, at Georgia) have come by a combined seven points.
“We did so many good things in this game but the ball would just not go in the basket,” head coach Scott Cherry said. “I feel bad for our kids. They battled and they believed, but they just couldn’t get over the hump. We’re not shooting the ball well right now, but I was extremely proud of our effort in the second half.”
The Panthers played for much of the first half without redshirt-senior John Brown, who sat at the 10:56 mark with two fouls and the score tied at 11-11. During that time, the Bulldogs were +11 (22-11) on the scoreboard and built a sizable halftime lead (33-22).
Georgia led 35-26 with 17:30 remaining in the second half, but from there, HPU held the Bulldogs without a field goal over the next 14:55 to pull within three (42-39) with less than three minutes to play.
Overall, the Panthers held the Bulldogs to three field goals and 16 points overall in the second half. Georgia shot just 13.6 percent (3-22) in the stanza and 13-of-44 (.295) for the game.
HPU made 9-of-30 (.300) second half field goals during a truly defensive struggle, but the Panthers were 0-of-7 from 3-point range and just 1-of-15 (.067) from beyond the arc in the game.
Despite the shooting woes, the Panthers were right in it on the strength of a +6 (16-10) turnover margin and +18 (26-8) edge in points in the paint. In addition, HPU won the rebounding battle (41-40) and held a sizable 15-5 edge in offensive rebounds which led to a 10-5 advantage in second chance points.
Senior forward Lorenzo Cugini led HPU a game-high 14 points (6-12 FG) and eight rebounds, while senior guard Adam chipped in 13 points and six rebounds.
Brown added 11 points (5-11 FG), four rebounds and two blocks and junior guard Jorge Perez-Laham distributed a game-high three assists (just one turnover) and grabbed four rebounds in 25 minutes of work off the bench.
HPU now returns home to the Millis Center for the first contest of a two-game homestand. The Panthers host MEAC foe Morgan State in the first game on Saturday (Nov. 28) at 4 p.m. Pre-game coverage on the High Point Panthers Radio Network begins at 3:30 p.m. For tickets, call 336-841-9276 or visit highpointpanthers.com.