FARMVILLE, Va. – Presbyterian forward Francois Lewis went off for a career-high 25 points and sparked a second-half comeback that sent the Blue Hose to a 78-65 win over Longwood Wednesday evening at Willett Hall.
 
With Presbyterian (8-7, 1-1 Big South) trailing 31-28 at halftime, Lewis scored 13 points after the break and directed an offensive explosion that saw the Blue Hose pour in 50 points in the second half. Lewis was one of four double-figure scorers for Presbyterian, joining Davon Bell and Reggie Dillard, who both scored 14, and JC Younger, who added 10 points and nine rebounds.
 
Lewis' 25 points and Presbyterian's game-changing run in the second half spoiled a breakout return for Longwood's leading scorer Isaiah Walton, who scored 19 points in his first game back from a four-game hiatus. Walton carried the Lancers in the first half, scoring 12 of his points in the first 20 minutes, but Presbyterian keyed in on the redshirt junior after halftime and held him to five points the rest of the way.
 
"[Walton's] ability to score the ball and make plays was a major reason why we were ahead in the first half," said Longwood head coach Jayson Gee. "I thought they really made a huge emphasis against him in the second half, and we didn't get anybody else to step up."
 
The second half of the game saw a rejuvenated Presbyterian squad shoot .571 (16-of-28) from the field after shooting just .321 (9-of-28) against the Lancers in the first half. Younger jumpstarted that turnaround by hitting back-to-back three-pointers as part of an opening seven-minute stretch that saw the Blue Hose knock down 8-of-9 shots from the field, including 4-of-5 from three-point range.
 
That rally evolved into a 24-6 run that turned a two-point Longwood lead into a 16-point Presbyterian advantage. Longwood (3-12, 0-2 Big South) led for nearly 11 straight minutes until the start of that run, but saw the momentum swing fully into Presbyterian's corner and hit shot just 1-of-8 from three-point range the rest of the way.
 
"We didn't shoot the ball incredibly well. Forty-three percent is not a great field goal percentage, but it's not truly indicative of the amount of open shots that we missed, as well as free throws. I thought we got what we wanted; we just didn't make the plays," Gee said.
 
Along with Walton, Damarion Geter added 12 points, and freshman Jordan Cintron scored a career-high 10 on 4-of-6 shooting off the bench. Both Geter and Cintron filled the stat sheet as well, with Geter adding six rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block, and Cintron finishing with a career-high seven rebounds, two assists, a block and a steal.
 
Longwood returns to the court this Saturday, Jan. 6, with a home matchup against Big South foe Gardner-Webb at 2 p.m. in Willett Hall.
 
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