Bobby Pettiford sparks huge rally and High Point tops Winthrop for Big South title, first NCAA bid

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (AP) — Bobby Pettiford scored 17 points off the bench and High Point rallied from a 15-point second half deficit to defeat Winthrop 81-69 in the Big South Championship title game on Sunday, giving the Panthers their first trip to the NCAA Tournament.

Winthrop led by 10 points at halftime and 48-33 with 15 minutes remaining. Pettiford nailed a 3-pointer and followed it with a layup to start a 14-0 run that got High Point within 48-47. Three and a half minutes later, Trae Benham's three-point play broke a 52-all tie and High Point led for the first time since it was 14-13.

The Panthers (29-5) led the rest of the way although Winthrop was within 75-69 with a minute to go. However, the Eagles did not score again and the Panthers went 6-for-6 from the free-throw line to close out their first Big South Championship title. High Point has won the Big South regular season title six times.

The Panthers' 14th straight win was due in large part to 50 points from their bench, 44 in the second half. In addition to Pettiford's 17 points, Abdoulaye Thiam had 12 points, Benham had eight points and 10 rebounds, and Terry Anderson added eight points. Kezza Giffa, who scored 16 points, was the only starter with more than six points.

Winthrop (23-11) had five players reach double-digits in scoring. Kelton Talford led the Eagles with 15 points, followed by Bryce Baker with 11, Nick Johnson with 11, Kasen Harrison with 10 and K.J. Doucet with 10 points to go with nine rebounds.

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