CHARLESTON, S.C. – Gardner-Webb evened the season series with Charleston Southern on Wednesday night as the Runnin' Bulldogs defeated the Bucs on their home court 85-77.
A'lahn Sumler paced all scorers with 25 on the night.
The visitors got ahead big early in the contest taking a 20-5 lead just ten minutes into the contest. However, the Bucs responded after a CSU timeout and outscored GWU 19-2 over the next six minutes of play, scoring on seven of the following ten possessions to take a 24-22 lead. Both offenses then caught fire for the final three minutes, with CSU able to take a 34-33 edge into the halftime break.
Nobal Days drilled a three-pointer at the top of arc as the buzzer sounded to take the advantage.
In the second half, the teams traded baskets early with the lead changing hands six times in six minutes. An Ademide Badmus layup at 13:39 put the Runnin' Bulldogs ahead 44-43 to take the lead for good. Charleston Southern found themselves in another long scoring doubt midway through the second half and GWU was able to create enough separation during it to get the victory.
The Buccaneers caught into the lead in the closing minutes, but superb free throw shooting by Julien Soumaoro kept the Bucs away long enough to secure their road victory.
Sumler had 25 points on the night and had
Taje' Kelly and
Kalib Clinton each tally 11 while
DJ Patrick finished with 10. Reginald Duhart Jr lead the team in rebounding with eight while
Nobal Days added seven and Clinton had six.
Sumler had a great night on the defensive end as he collected three steals in the effort. Days added a pair of blocks on the night with Duhart and Sumler each getting one as well.
Gardner-Webb was able to create much of their separation in the fastbreak, pushing the ball up quickly off rebounds for a 29-14 advantage. On the glass, the Bucs got up 44-42 and had 15 on the offensive end of the floor.
Charleston Southern will be back in action on Saturday with a trip to UNC Asheville (10-2) on deck. Tipoff for the contest is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. against the conference leaders. In the first matchup of the season between these two squads, the Bulldogs came away with a 71-65 win inside the Buc Dome.
