High Point overcomes 17-point deficit, bests Winthrop on Giffa's last-second shot

 

Kezza Giffa floated home the game-winner Saturday at Winthrop. Giffa scored 37 points in the win. (Photo:  High Point Athletics)

ROCK HILL, S.C. – Everyone in the Winthrop Coliseum knew how the final 14 seconds of Saturday’s game between High Point and Winthrop would unfold. It didn’t matter.

Panther point guard Kezza Giffa, who was a point away from equaling the season-high points total by a Big South scorer and had hit 10 of his team’s 23 made baskets, was going to get the ball with the game tied at 81. It would be up to Winthrop to stop him.

He did, and Winthrop couldn’t.

Giffa dribbled high, drove left, drew contact, and finished with a floating jumper that gave him the league’s season-high of 37 points and his Panthers the 83-81 road victory before a crowd of 2,440 at Winthrop Coliseum.

Kezza Giffa with the winner (?). Still time, but not much. pic.twitter.com/APvKLPVUcG

— Brian (@sportsmatters) January 27, 2024

“In a tie game on the road like that, we just let them play,” High Point coach Alan Huss said after the game. “We wanted him to get downhill and see if he could touch paint. It felt like with (Titas) Sargiunas and (Trae) Benham out there, it would be really difficult for them to help pinch some corners. When guys didn’t step and they didn’t help, Kezza made a play.”

Winthrop (14-9, 5-3 Big South) started the game as the definite aggressor. The Eagles responded with a 10-0 run after a Benham triple broke the seal for the Panthers. A Kelton Talford bucket two minutes later provided Winthrop its first double-digit lead at 16-5. The home side continued its sizzling performance in the opening 20, allowing High Point to draw no closer than four points. The Eagles led by as many as 14 in the stanza, scoring on 72 percent of their possessions while turning over the ball just over six percent of the time. Winthrop shot 61 percent in the opening period.

The second half started much the same. Winthrop held a 13-point lead after a Sin’Cere McMahon free throw, around which Huss was assessed a technical foul. High Point (18-4, 7-0) almost seemed to draw energy from the call while remaining patient in its game plan. After Winthrop gained its biggest lead of the game at 17, the Panthers methodically started to chip away. A quick 5-0 burst keyed by a Kimani Hamilton layup and Gizza triple took a small slice out of the margin. The rest was yet to come.

High Point started its ascent at the line, as it would do all day. Hamilton and Sargiunas each hit a pair of freebies that cut the deficit to 10. Gizza would then convert an and-one that would further snip the margin into the single digits. Following a K.J. Doucet free throw, the big Panther burst arrived. High Point knocked down four free throws – sandwiched by a pair of Benham threes – that gave the Panthers their first lead since the initial Benham triple. A Hamilton layup on the ensuing possession gave High Point a 65-62 lead with 9:29 remaining.

Winthrop would seize back the lead on a Doucet bucket with 5:52 to play. The Eagles responded with a 7-2 microburst that put them ahead, 75-71, with 4:17 left. A tug-of-war ensued, with High Point scoring six of the next seven and regaining the lead at 77-76 with 2:02 to play. Winthrop forward Kelton Talford put home a bucket at the 1:40 mark to give the Eagles their final lead of the day.

The Eagles had a chance to take a two-point lead with under a minute remaining, as Nick Johnson put home a layup and appeared to be heading to the line for an and-one. Johnson was assessed for traveling, however, giving the Panthers back the ball. Giffa then connected on a layup with 24 seconds to play, giving High Point a three-point lead.  The lead would last just 10 seconds, as Kasen Harrison converted his own and-one to level the game. Giffa’s final shot proved to be the deciding try, as Winthrop’s last-second heave went awry.

“He’s a really good player. He made a great shot,” Winthrop coach Mark Prosser said of Giffa. “Our kids – we trust them at the defensive end of the floor on one possession. Give a lot of credit to him and to them. Certainly, they earned it and enjoyed it. They got the better of it today.”

The second half proved an interesting contrast. High Point made 56 percent of its shots, with Giffa responsible for half of those. Both coaches noted what they saw from their teams in the period.

“I think teams learn by experience,” Huss said. “We lost a couple of these games early on (in the season). When you lose them, you learn how to do something a little different.”

“We did some good things down the stretch. We played really hard, which we didn’t do in the first half. They were the more physical team. It was just two different types of makeups of teams. Their side has been through a lot of battles and they’re physically stronger, tougher, and more solid than us. That’s why they got out to the big lead. We had to adjust to it and feel it before we could play against it.”

“It’s really positive that we’ve shown we can build significant leads against good teams,” Prosser said. “We fell victim to an eight, nine, ten-minute lull where we were sort of on our heels a little bit. That was what sort of separated it in the second half.”

“At the end of the day, we have to decide who we’re going to be. Are we going to be the team that has the 17-point lead or the team that feels a little bit of pressure and doesn’t finish it out? It’s that moment where you have to decide if we’re going to continue to be the aggressor or allow this to continue on. The ability to play through adversity is a challenge for us, and we need to accept it. We’ll keep working on it, and sooner or later, hopefully it’ll turn in our direction.”

Giffa led High Point and all scorers with 37. The Panther point guard hit 11-of-18 tries from the field and 13-of-16 from the stripe. Hamilton and Benham added 13 apiece, with Sargiunas pouring in 10. The Panthers shot 46.2 percent (24-for-52) from the deck, bolstered by a 56 percent performance (14-for-25) in the second period. High Point knocked down 27-of-35 (77.1 percent) from the line).

Talford’s 22 led Winthrop, with the Eagle forward hitting 9-of-14 from the floor and 4-of-6 from the line. Harrison added 18 on 6-for-9 from the floor and 5-for-5 from the line. Doucet booked 11, while Johnson contributed 10. The Eagles hit 31-of-56 (55.4 percent) from the floor and 66.7 percent (16-of-24) from the line.

Winthrop gets a week off before returning to Big South play. The Eagles will venture to the Kimmel Center in Asheville, N.C., to square off with Asheville next Saturday. Game time is set for 2:00 (Eastern), with streaming coverage set for ESPN+. High Point will play in the next Big South wildcard contest, hosting Longwood Thursday evening in the Qubein Center in High Point, N.C. The tip time is set for 7:00, with the game aired over ESPNU.

HIGH POINT 83, WINTHROP 81

HIGH POINT (18-4, 7-0 BIG SOUTH)

Hamilton 3-8 7-8 13, Bodo Bodo 0-2 1-2 1, Giffa 11-18 13-16 37, Benham 4-8 1-3 13, Thiam 3-9 0-0 8, Sargiunas 3-5 4-4 10, Dziuba 0-1 0-0 0, Hines 0-1 1-2 1, Potter 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 24-52 27-35 83.

WINTHROP (14-9, 5-3)

Talford 9-14 4-6 22, Claxton 0-0 0-0 0, Anumba 1-3 2-2 4, Johnson 4-10 1-2 10, Harrison 6-9 5-5 18, McMahon 3-5 1-2 8, Doucet 5-7 1-3 11, Timmerman 3-8 2-4 8, Diallo 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 31-56 16-24 81.

Halftime:  Winthrop 47-35. 3-Point goals:  High Point 8-22 (Hamilton 0-1, Giffa 2-7, Benham 4-8, Thiam 2-5, Sargiunas 0-1), Winthrop 3-11 (Talford 0-1, Anumba 0-1, Johnson 1-4, Harrison 1-1, McMahon 1-3, Timmerman 0-1). Fouled out:  Bodo Bodo (HPU), Doucet (WU). Rebounds:  High Point 34 (Bodo Bodo 10), Winthrop 29 (Doucet/Timmerman 6). Assists: High Point 7 (Giffa 5), Winthrop 6 (Talford/Anumba/McMahon/Doucet/Timmerman/Diallo 1). Total fouls:  Winthrop 23, High Point 21. Technicals:  Huss (HPU).

Points off turnovers:  High Point 14, Winthrop 9.  Points in the paint:  Winthrop 56, High Point 26.  Second-chance points:  Winthrop 16, High Point 8.  Fast-break points:  High Point 8, Winthrop 5.  Bench points:  Winthrop 27, High Point 11.