BUIES CREEK, N.C. (AP) — Freshman Dwayne Sutton had season highs of 25 points and 18 rebounds to help UNC Asheville beat Winthrop 77-68 in Sunday’s championship game of the Big South Tournament, earning the program’s first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2012.
Sutton was named the tournament’s most valuable player for the fourth-seeded Bulldogs (22-11), who shot 53 percent after in the second half by aggressively attacking the paint to take control.
Sam Hughes added all 15 of his points in a second half that saw UNC Asheville get to the free throw line 28 times and outrebound the Eagles, completing a two-day sweep of the tournament’s top two seeds to claim its fifth championship in its ninth finals appearance.
Jimmy Gavin scored 31 points to lead the second-seeded Eagles (23-9), who had control of the opening half but went cold as the Bulldogs made their move. Winthrop shot just 34 percent after halftime and 35 percent for the game while struggling to keep the Bulldogs out of the lane, with leading scorer Keon Johnson finishing with two points on 1-for-16 shooting.
Winthrop was making a league-record 14th appearance in the final and was seeking its first title since 2010, but instead the Eagles lost in the final for the third straight season.
The teams split their regular-season meetings, each winning by a point at home — though the Bulldogs’ 85-84 win in January came after rallying from 23 points down in the final 15½ minutes. It was the biggest second-half comeback in program history.
They rallied again from a double-digit deficit, this time 11 points late in the first half, primarily by putting their head down and pushing into the lane or scrapping on the glass. Trailing 33-24 at halftime, UNC Asheville got three baskets from Hughes in the opening 5 minutes to cut into the deficit and before going ahead for good on a 3-pointer from leading scorer Dylan Smith with 11:39 left.
The Bulldogs stayed in front from there, with Sutton coming up with a huge tip-in while being fouled to protect a three-point lead with about 3 minutes left. That started the clinching 8-0 burst, with Hughes driving by Duby Okeke for another key basket in the run that finally clinched the title for UNC Asheville.
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TIP-INS
UNC ASHEVILLE: Smith hit three second-half 3s after a 1-for-6 shooting performance in the first half. He finished with 11 points. … Kevin Vannatta scored 12 points. … UNC Asheville made 18 of 28 free throws in the second half after going 0 for 1 in the first half.
WINTHROP: Joshua Davenport had 15 points. .. Winthrop made 5 of 33 3-point tries, including 1 of 16 after halftime. … Winthrop shot 13 of 17 from the free throw line.
UP NEXT
UNC Asheville will play in the NCAA Tournament.
Winthrop will wait to find out if it plays in the postseason
