Longwood made program history by grinding out a 64-58 win over Charleston Southern Friday evening that was the Lancers’ record 10th Big South victory of the season.
The win was the fifth in a row for the surging Lancers (10-14, 10-9 Big South), who surpassed last year’s previous record of nine Big South wins and maintained their hold on sole possession of fifth place in the conference standings.
Powering Longwood’s latest triumph in an end-of-season stretch that has seen them win eight of their past nine games was a team-wide scoring effort that featured four double-digit scorers, including Juan Munoz (14 points), Jesper Granlund (12), DeShaun Wade (12) and Leslie Nkereuwem (10). Those performances came in the absence of star freshman point guard Justin Hill, who entered the game averaging 11.3 points per game but was sidelined for the first time all season with an injury.
Longwood overcame Hill’s absence with yet another staunch defensive performance, holding Charleston Southern (2-18, 1-15 Big South) under 40.0 percent shooting for a second straight night while forcing 16 turnovers. Phlandrous Fleming Jr., the Big South’s No. 3 scorer, once again led the Buccaneers with 19 points but shot just 6-of-20 from the field and 2-of-12 from beyond the arc.
Meanwhile, the Lancers knocked down nine three-pointers and outscored Charleston Southern 20-14 in the paint. DeShaun Wade was 4-of-9 from beyond the arc and added three steals, while Munoz and Granlund both hit multiple treys and combined for four takeaways.
The win comes in Longwood’s final scheduled game of the regular season and sends the Lancers into a week of preparation for the 2021 Big South Championship as the Big South’s winningest team since Jan. 19.
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