HPU Shoves Past Elon in Commanding Win

Panthers improve to 5-1 all time against Phoenix

By: Megan Hovey

HIGH POINT, N.C.- High Point University was able to breathe a sigh of relief Wednesday night inside the Qubein Arena.

The HPU men’s basketball team (6-1) defeated neighborhood rival Elon (1-7) 84-70.

The Panthers were looking to continue their hot streak after winning the SoCal Challenge earlier this month, defeating both Central Michigan and Tennessee State.

It was unequivocally High Point’s night, with the Panthers outscoring the Phoenix in points from turnovers (26-14), the paint (44-40), fast breaks (18-11) and the bench (24-5). Elon only was able to top HPU in second-chance points (19-16).

What made the night sweeter was the fact that HPU’s performance wasn’t a one-man show. Emmanuel Izunabor produced 15 points (including 11 in the second half) and added a team-high nine rebounds. Abdoulaye Thiam posted 14 points and Jaden House finished the night with 13 points and five rebounds. Zach Austin and Bryant Randleman both posted nine points and Bryson Childress finished with eight points.

While Wednesday’s win was undoubtedly dominant, Panthers head coach G.G. Smith thinks that he still has some tricks up his sleeve.

“Like I’ve been saying all year, we’re extremely athletic,” he said. “We’ve still got Sam Perez and Ahmil Flowers. This game was a little bit too tight for me to put those guys in, but we do have some depth with our team and hopefully we’ll use it to wear down some teams.”

The only unwavering part of the game came within the first five minutes of the first half, with Elon leading 10-9. A 3-pointer by HPU’s Brock Williams gave the Panthers the lead and the team immediately went on an 8-0 scoring run, highlighted by a jump shot from House and a layup from Thiam. HPU never looked back.

The first half was highlighted by two 3-pointers from Childress, giving the Panthers a cushion as they headed into the locker room at halftime, leading the Phoenix 41-31.

The second half started off with a missed dunk from HPU’s Alex Holt, who got revenge on it less than two minutes later, bringing the Panthers’ lead to 47-41. Elon’s Max Mackinnon and Sam Sherry were pulling all of the weight for the Phoenix throughout the half. Mackinnon finished the night with 24 points and 12 rebounds while Sherry posted 19 points and nine rebounds.

In his first full season with the Panthers, Smith was most concerned with Elon’s zone defense when preparing for the game.

“We haven’t seen much of it at all this year,” he said. “We worked on it and we knew that they played mostly zone against Radford in the game before they played us. They’re just different shots. They come from different passes and different angles.”

Izunabor says he used a former HPU teammate for inspiration in preparation for Wednesday’s game.

“I watched Cliff Thomas Jr. when I was a freshman,” he said. “Whenever he played against Elon, he didn’t take them lightly.”

Both teams are set to play at home on Dec. 3, with the Panthers facing off against North Florida and the Phoenix taking on UNCG.