HPU women turn back Winthrop
Feb. 29—ROCK HILL, S.C. — Nevaeh Zavala scored the go-ahead basket with 5.5 seconds left and High Point University outlasted Winthrop 65-64 in overtime in Big South Conference women's basketball Wednesday at Winthrop.
Trailing by a point, the Panthers had the ball out of bounds along the right sideline with seven seconds left. Amaria McNear threw a pass over the top to Zavala in the key, and Zavala scored an easy layup.
The Eagles couldn't get off a shot to end the game, and High Point won for the ninth game in a row and the 13th time in 14 games.
Lauren Bevis scored 23 points to lead the Panthers (18-10 overall, 13-2 conference), who led 23-22 at halftime as neither team led by more than six the whole game. Nakyah Terrell added 12 points while Faith Price had 10 points.
High Point shot 47% from the field for the game, including 9 of 18 from 3-point range. The Eagles shot 32%, making just three 3-pointers, but grabbed 14 offensive rebounds and finished with a 10-0 advantage on second-chance points.
Marissa Gasaway had 18 points and 18 rebounds to lead Winthrop (13-15, 7-8), which made a jumper with seven seconds left in regulation to force overtime. The Eagles led by three early in overtime and regained the lead with a pair of free throws in the final seconds.
That set the stage for Zavala's basket for the Panthers, who have already clinched the conference's regular-season title and the top seed in next week's tournament. High Point will host Longwood on Saturday on Senior Day.
