Joe Cromwell led the Panthers with a
game-high 22 points. Cromwell was 6-for-13 from the floor and hit
9-of-10 free throws. Marcus Vaughn followed Cromwell with 15 points
off the bench. Lamont Stokes led the Bishops with 18 points.
The Panthers shot only 33.9 percent from the floor in the game.
They hit 21-of-29 free throws in the game. The Panthers tied a
season-low with only 10 turnovers in the game.
The Bishops led from the opening tip and never trailed in the
game. They scored the game's first eight points and led by 11 just
six minutes into the game. The Panthers trailed 36-28 with three
minutes left in the half, but the Bishops went on a 12-3 run the
rest of the way to open up a 48-31 lead at halftime.
The Panthers began chipping away at the Bishops' lead at the start
of the second half. Blake Craft's 3-pointer brought the Panthers
within eight, 54-46, with 15 minutes left. Stokes pushed the lead
back to 12, 59-47, with 11:44 remaining.
Cromwell cut the lead to six by completing a three-point play. He
later hit a jumper to bring the Panthers within three, 61-58, with
8:18 left. The Panthers would get within three points on three more
occasions, the last when Nic Whitfield hit a pair of free throws to
make it 72-69 with 27 seconds left. The Bishops hit only 3-of-6
free throws the rest of the way but were able to hold off the
Panthers.
The Panthers host Pensacola Christian on Tuesday at 7 p.m. in a
non-conference game. It will be the third game in four days for the
Panthers.