ASHEVILLE, N.C. Winthrop scored the final seven points of the game as the Eagles rallied for a 56-49 Big South Conference victory over UNC Asheville Wednesday night at Justice Center.
The Eagles outscored the Bulldogs 16-3 over the final eight minutes to earn a season sweep over UNC Asheville.
Winthrop (6-13, 5-5 BSC) was led by Andre Jones with 15 points, while Byron Faison contributed 12 points. George Valentine finished with 10 points and eight rebounds.
The Bulldogs (9-12, 5-5 BSC) were led by Matt Dickey's 11 points, and Sean Smith added 10. John Williams came close to a double-double with eight points and 10 rebounds.
A three-pointer from freshman guard J.P. Primm of UNC Asheville ended a 6:30 drought and tied the game at 49-49.
The teams exchanged turnovers, and Winthrop took the lead for good when Valentine scored off a lay-up from Reggie Middleton. Middleton made the steal on the defensive end and made a nice pass to Valentine for a 51-49 Eagle lead at the 1:53 mark.
The Bulldogs committed another turnover and Jones made Asheville pay with a three-pointer at the 1:01 mark for a 54-49 Eagle lead.
The home team missed three 3-point attempts in the final minute of play. Jones hit two free throws with three seconds left to seal the win.
Winthrop was red-hot from the three-point line in the first half as it connected on five of its first seven attempts to race to a 27-13 lead at the 5-minute mark. Faison and Justin Burton connected on all five treys to help give the Eagles the lead.
But Winthrop went cold and Asheville finished the first half on an 8-0 run to close to 27-21 at halftime.
The Bulldogs continued the momentum to start the second half and out-scored the Eagles 25-13 to get a 46-40 lead on a Dickey lay-up at the 8:41 mark.
A Corbin jumper cut the lead to 46-42. Asheville had four different chances to build on the lead but two turnovers and two missed free throws did not allow the home team to score.
Jones connected on a trey to make it 46-45 at 6:31 and two free throws from Valentine gave Winthrop a 47-46 lead. Jones scored on a lay-up with 3:35 left to push the lead to 49-46.
Both teams struggled from the field. Winthrop shot 38 percent as it went 20-of-52. Asheville shot 33 percent, shooting 15-of-45. The Eagles knocked down a season-high 10 three-pointers as they were 10-of-23 for 43 percent. Asheville shot just 24 percent as it went 5-of-21.
UNC Asheville travels to Liberty Saturday night for a 7 p.m. Big South contest, while Winthrop plays again at non-conference foe Charlotte Saturday night, also at 7 p.m.
