It figures to be a high-scoring affair as the Winthrop Eagles (20-7) visit High Point to play the Panthers (18-9). The game starts at 9:00 pm ET on Thursday, Feb. 25 and will air on ESU and ES3.
The Panthers edged Radford 75-72 the last time they played. John Brown was the team’s high scorer with 17 points on 7-for-14 shooting. The Eagles are coming off an 81-80 win over UNC Asheville in their last outing. Jimmy Gavin led the game in scoring with 26 points on 8-for-19 shooting.
Over the last five games, Xavier Cooks has been on fire for the Eagles. During that stretch, he has averaged 20.0 points, 9.0 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 0.6 steals, 2.0 blocks, and 2.6 three-pointers.
This matchup figures to be a high-scoring affair as High Point ranks 28th in the nation in offensive efficiency (114.2), while Winthrop is 33rd (114.0).
This will be the second matchup of the season between these two teams. The Eagles won the first game 86-66. Gavin was a top performer in the victory with 29 points, three rebounds, three assists, and six three-pointers.
Notes
In its last game, Winthrop won by a margin of one point. High Point is 3-5 in games decided by a margin of three points or less. Winthrop has a 4-1 record in close games.
Ranked 33rd, the Winthrop Eagles have an offensive rating of 114.0. The High Point Panthers rank 127th with a defensive rating of just 101.9.
High Point has an average field goal percentage of 48.1% (ranked 25th). Winthrop is a losing 2-4 when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.
The High Point Panthers rank higher based on their field goal percentage (25th) than their effective field goal percentage (60th). The Winthrop Eagles rank higher based on their effective field goal percentage (15th) than their field goal percentage (23rd).
High Point ranks 59th in assists, registering 15.4 per game. Winthrop performs worse at 289th with 11.7 assists per game.
Winthrop, the 22nd-ranked team in blocked shots, registers an average of 5.3 per game. High Point ranks lower at 205th with 3.2.
On average, High Point makes 8.0 steals per game. Winthrop has a winning 4-1 record when it gives up at least 8 steals.
