Winthrop forward Kelton Talford led the Eagles with 19 points and 14 boards Thursday night. (Photo: Professional Photography Group/Winthrop Athletics)
ROCK HILL, S.C. – We all like to fatten up a bit around the holidays. I’m no exclusion.
Winthrop loaded up on a 100-piece Thursday night, drubbing Bob Jones, 103-55.
Without belaboring the point, let’s go…Inside the Numbers!
• For those of you who are regular followers of mine or the outlet, you’ll know we know and love AJ Desai, especially when he’s on the whistle. (#WhereInTheWorldIsAJDesai) Well, tonight, he was on the whistle for this one, and many of us were wondering why he would work a game involving a non-Division I team.
Well, I got my answer.
Winthrop hosted a kids dance troupe called Dance U during the half, and one of the interested spectators would be one AJ Desai. His daughter (I’m pretty sure, anyway) was in the performance. AJ stood by watching with a big smile on his face. He called her over for a big hug after the performance was finished, then went back to the locker room wearing a huge smile.
Good on you, AJ. You’re still our guy.
• The game preview for this one from Bob Jones had one of the funniest things I’ve ever read. It shouldn’t have been this funny, but I laughed. It read:
Last season when the Bruins played the Eagles, it resulted in a 90-49 loss, but the Bruins were able to get the shots they wanted. It boiled down to Winthrop making more shots and grabbing more rebounds.
Yeah, that’s…usually how it works. I would hope the team that won by 41 points would have made more shots. I might know a little ball. All those years of J-school and covering games have finally paid off!
• Kelton Talford logged his 18th career double-double in the win, scoring 19 points and hauling in 14 caroms. The super-senior also paced the Birds’ four double-digit scorers on the night. Forward K.J. Doucet booked 13 and hauled in six boards in 21 minutes, while guard Nick Johnson tallied 11 on 4-for-5 shooting. Reserve forward Yoro Diallo contributed 10 on 5-of-6 from the deck in 11 minutes.
• WU connected on 58.5 percent (38-of-65) from the floor, including a sizzling 60.6 percent (20-for-33) in the second 20. The Eagles also sank 12 threes on the night, a number only bested by the 13 they dropped against Piedmont earlier in the season. The shooting percentage was by far the best of the season, easily eclipsing the 54.7 percent Winthrop converted against Coastal Carolina in its prior outing.
• Winthrop also tried just 20 free throws – hitting 15 – in its second-lowest number of attempts in a game this season. Only the 13 the Eagles tried at Virginia Tech resulted in a lower total.
• Eagle guard Cam Christy scored the game’s final two buckets, giving him a Division 1 career-best. Christy transferred to Winthrop from Mount St. Joseph University in Kentucky prior to last season.
• Winthrop held Bob Jones to just 32.3 percent (20-for-62) from the deck. That is the lowest percentage from any Eagle opponent this season. In addition, Bob Jones hit just three triples, which tied with LIU for the lowest number of long-distance conversions against Winthrop this year. The 18.8 percent success rate from deep was also the lowest by any Eagle opponent.
• Continuing with the season-best theme, Bob Jones attempted just eight free throws. This was the first single-digit number of attempts by a Winthrop opponent. The five makes were also the lowest of the year.
• Winthrop hauled in 56 boards – which were not, amazingly, the highest total of caroms secured by the Eagles this year. The Eagles grabbed 58 against Piedmont earlier this year.
• I don’t have numbers on this, but Winthrop poured in 52 paint points on the night. That number is significant and fits well with the Eagles’ modus operandi.
• Bob Jones forward Trevor Brunson had a huge game. He has kind of a Division I look about him – he’s tall (6’6”), sees the floor well, and can shoot. Brunson, a senior from Ramseur, N.C., booked 21 on the night. Brunson had 27 in the Bruins’ game against Covenant. Brunson hit 7-of-16 from the boards and all four free throws he tried.
• Bob Jones is a member of the NCCAA. The Bruins were a provisional member of the NCAA Division III ranks for three years, but chose not to continue at that level.
Bob Jones will enjoy a week away from the floor before playing another exhibition game at Division II Anderson University in Anderson, S.C., next Thursday. Winthrop next hits the deck Tuesday night, as the Eagles travel to the Tucker Center in Tallahassee to battle Florida State. Game time is set for 7 p.m., with streaming coverage on ACCNX.
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