Big South Conference Tournament Recaps

Conway, SC (SportsNetwork.com) – Keon Johnson scored a team-high 15 points as Winthrop downed Longwood 71-58 in the semifinals of the Big South Conference Tournament.

Winthrop (19-12), which came in as a No. 5 seed, will play Coastal Carolina on Sunday in a rematch of last year’s title game won by Coastal Carolina.

Keon Moore chipped in with 14 points, while Andre Smith and Xavier Cooks each netted 11 for the Eagles, who outscored the ninth-seeded Lancers at the free throw line 22-10.

Longwood (11-23) upset top-seeded Charleston Southern in the quarterfinals behind 22 points and 15 rebounds from Shaquille Johnson. Johnson never got going in the quick turnaround, shooting an ugly 1-of-10 from the field and committing seven turnovers.

Quincy Taylor and Leron Fisher carried the Lancers with 23 points apiece.

Three-pointers from Smith and Cooks in the final minute of the first half staked Winthrop to a 30-20 lead at halftime.

Late in the second half, Longwood cut a 16-point deficit down to eight, but a Moore 3-pointer and Johnson three-point play gave Winthrop enough breathing room over the final five minutes.

Final Score: Coastal Carolina 73, Gardner-Webb 70

Conway, SC (SportsNetwork.com) – Badou Diagne poured in 19 points on 8-of-11 shooting as Coastal Carolina held off Gardner-Webb 73-70 in the semifinals of the Big South Conference Tournament.

Coastal Carolina (23-9), which came in as a No. 3 seed, will play Winthrop on Sunday with a trip to the NCAA Tournament on the line. The Chanticleers upended Winthrop in last year’s title game but lost the only meeting between the clubs this season.

Elijah Wilson and Tristian Curtis chipped in 13 and 11 points, respectively, in the wire-to-wire victory.

Jerome Hill paced the seventh-seeded Bulldogs (20-14) with 17 points. Tyrell Nelson added 15 and Tyler Strange 14 in a losing effort.

Coastal Carolina shot 51.7 percent from the field in the first half and led by as many as 11 before heading into the break with a 36-28 advantage.

Gardner-Webb pulled within two inside the final minute and trailed 73-70 after Wilson split a pair of free throws with under 10 seconds to play. The Bulldogs missed two 3-point attempts before the buzzer.

Categorized in: NCAA Basketball