FARMVILLE, Va. – Part of Longwood's practice Sunday may involve cleanup duty and a mop.
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After pulling off a 79-73 upset of Big South unbeaten Gardner-Webb Saturday afternoon at Willett Hall, the Lancers (4-12, 1-2 Big South) turned their locker room into a Powerade shower in celebration of their first Big South win and the end of a seven-game losing streak.
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"It was amazing," said redshirt senior
B.K. Ashe. "A lot of screaming and yelling. People throwing Powerade on each other. It's a great feeling for us."
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The win was Longwood's first against Gardner-Webb (7-9, 2-1 Big South) since joining the Big South in 2012-13 and snapped an adversity-riddled first half of the season, during which the Lancers saw their lineup whittled down to as few as seven scholarship players due to injuries.
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However, the Lancers returned to nearly full strength Saturday and saw their reunited guard trio of Ashe,
Isaiah Walton and
Charles Glover combine for 50 points for their third-highest scoring output of the season. Ashe led the charge with 21 points, 13 rebounds, five assists and three steals, while Walton poured in 18 – including a team-high 10 in the first half – and Glover added 11 and a pair of assists.
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Back on the court together for only the second time in Longwood's past eight games, Ashe, Glover and Walton jumpstarted Longwood's bid to take down a Gardner-Webb team coming off back-to-back wins over Big South preseason darlings Liberty and Campbell.
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The Big South's fourth-leading three-point shooting team, the Runnin' Bulldogs got 22 points from guard Liam O'Reilly and 16 more from forward D.J. Laster, but could not solve Longwood's defensive pressure in the second half. After shooting 6-of-13 from long range in the first half, Gardner-Webb hit just 1-of-8 treys and committed 11 turnovers after the break.
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Longwood forced 18 turnovers total and converted those chances into 22 points, the team's most against a Division I foe this season.
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"We had to focus on just today and not our past losses," Ashe said. "Before the game, coach challenged me to really take this team and lead everybody. With about four minutes left, guys were feeling good about getting the win, but I said it's not over yet and anything can happen. We reminded the young guys to stay focused and play to the buzzer."
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Ashe kept Longwood on top late, posting a heroic second half that included 17 points, eight rebounds and three assists. He turned the game around just over five minutes into the second half, scoring eight consecutive points to turn a six-point Gardner-Webb lead into a tied game. Ashe hit back-to-back treys during that span, tying the game at 50-50 with his second, and then knotted the score again at 52-52 by knocking down two free throws.
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Longwood took the lead for good nearly three minutes later on a
Spencer Franklin layup and forced Gardner-Webb into eight turnovers over the final 11:08 to hold off a late charge from the Bulldogs.
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"I told our kids I'm extremely proud of them because of the adversity they've faced," said Longwood head coach
Jayson Gee. "With so many guys in and out of the lineup and the injuries, it's just been a real frustrating preseason and start to the season. And then for them to maintain their resiliency and composure like they did tonight, I was awful proud."
Longwood held Gardner-Webb without a field goal over the game's final 2:38, forcing three stops on the Bulldogs' final six possessions. The Lancers held a one-point lead – 73-72 – with 1:27 left on the clock, but ended the game on a 6-1 run thanks to Walton's six made free throws and steal.
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With the momentum of a conference win in hand for the first time this season, Longwood will now embark on a two-game road trip that takes them to UNC Asheville on Jan. 9 and rival Liberty on Jan. 12. Those games precede Longwood's return to Willett Hall against Campbell on Jan. 15.
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