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High Point, NC- On a day with such a loaded slate of games, one of the best places to be on Friday night in college basketball at the mid-major level was in central North Carolina. A matchup featuring a 12 seed in last year's NCAA Tournament and a 30-9 team that made the CBI Championship game was bound to be awesome. And it sure lived up to the expectations.
The first half was the college basketball equivalent of a rock fight. Neither team shot above 30% from the field in the first half. It was a sloppy start for both sides, just the kind of game that Andy Kennedy and UAB wanted to play. I asked High Point Head Coach Alan Huss how he felt his team responded to the Blazer's physicality: "We're kind of known to be the opposite... They got us to play their style of game tonight...I think we responded in the second half, it took us 20 minutes to get used to it...when their really dialed in, they are as difficult as I've coached against to score on."
High Point opened the second half on an 8-0 run in less than 4 minutes and that gave them a nice boost of confidence as the half continued. Coach Huss spoke about this stretch postgame:
"I think we did a better job early in the second half of just relaxing a little bit...we talked at halftime about relaxing and playing basketball and I thought we did that...we settled in and played offense."
UAB would make this a game as the second half progressed behind impressive performances from Efrem Johnson who had 10 points and Yaxel Lendeborg who had 15 points.
A key play that tensed up the Qubein Center was with 6:45 remaining in the game when High Point's Kezza Giffa drove to the lane and fell hard onto his face. He did not get up for a few moments and then was immediately escorted to the locker room. Surprisingly, he returned with 4:32 left in the game. UAB was not able to take advantage of the time Giffa was off the floor and that is a testament to how deep and versatile the Panthers rotation is.
The Blazers would claw their way back in the final frame. With under a minute to go, a Josh Ibukunoluwa foul sent Efrem Johnson to the free-throw line with 0:47 seconds remaining and he would hit both to make it 66-65. The play of the game came on the next play when D-Maurian Williams made a great assist to a wide-open Kimani Hamilton for a dunk. On the final possession with a chance to tie the game and send it to overtime, High Point's defense stepped up and never allowed UAB to get a quality look.
The crowd was into this game from end to end and it made a huge difference down the stretch. UAB is one of the toughest teams to play in the country and is undoubtedly capable of winning a difficult game. This High Point team proved it can win even when they don't play like they want to and is built to repeat their success from last season. I expect the Panthers to continue to improve as the season progresses and this win could be a key reflection point they look back on that helped get them over the hump and into the NCAA Tournament.
High Point's next game is at home against American University on Monday, November 18th, 2024 at 7 p.m. on ESPN+. UAB takes on Auburn Montgomery at home on Monday, November 18th, 2024 at 6:30 p.m. on ESPN+. Follow along on X (@TrevorEverette) for live game updates, and for more of my work on House of College Hoops and House Enterprise, head here.