ELON, N.C. – Elon University men's basketball fell to High Point, 83-77, on Saturday, Dec. 4. Despite the result, the Phoenix had the third-highest attendance in a game at Schar Center, including a record 1,337 students.
 
"First of all I just want to thank the crowd," head coach Mike Schrage opened. "The student support was incredible tonight. I know they're getting ready to attack their finals and go home for Christmas break but we're going to need them in a big way come J-term and spring semester. For tonight, it hurts to not be able to break through and get the result we wanted, but we are going to keep getting better and getting stronger. I thought we did tonight in some areas – I thought we came with the right mindset and defensive mentality early, but we have to learn to put 40 minutes together, and I think that starts with our preparation."

THE RUNDOWN
- The first eight minutes of the game were a slugfest, with neither team being able to gain much separation. After High Point jumped out to an early 5-0 lead, Elon battled back on the strength of four-straight free throws from Torrence Watson. UNCG pushed their lead back to four with 13:49 remaining in the opening half, before two more free throws from Watson brought the score to 9-7.
- After the Panthers took an eight-point lead with seven minutes to play in the first half, a quick 6-0 Elon run got the Phoenix back within two. Hunter McIntosh and Hunter Woods were the catalysts for the spurt, as McIntosh dished a pretty assist to Woods who knocked down a corner three, before Woods returned the favor by finding McIntosh for a three in transition. The six quick Phoenix points brought the score to 20-18 with six minutes left until halftime.
- High Point pushed their lead to as much as 14 before the break, but Elon fought back with another 6-0 run to close the half. Watson sparked the spurt with his and-one at the 48 second mark, before McIntosh drained another triple to beat the halftime buzzer. The Phoenix entered the break trailing 40-32.
- Elon came out firing in the second half, opening the final 20 minutes with an early 11-2 run. Darius Burford got things going with a tough layup over a High Point defender, before Watson drilled his first three of the second stanza to bring Elon within eight. After an and-one finish for Burford got the Phoenix within five, Watson culminated the run with his second three in as many attempts to cut the deficit to 46-43.
- With High Point leading 68-61 with 7:32 remaining in the game, a 5-0 Elon run brought the Phoenix within two. Watson scored all five points on the spurt and brought the score to 68-66 with 6:42 to left to play. The Panthers were able to hold the Phoenix off from there to secure the win.

NOTES
- Torrence Watson led the charge for the Phoenix, erupting for a career-high 34 points (25 in the second half), finishing the night 9-of-12 from the field, 5-of-7 from beyond the arc and 11-of-12 from the charity stripe. Watson has now scored at least 10 points in four of his last five games and six times overall this season. His 34-point effort is the first 30-point game by an Elon player since McIntosh scored 30 points against Delaware last season.
- Hunter McIntosh chipped in 16 points, five assists and two rebounds in 36 minutes. He has now dished out at least four assists in four consecutive games, including three 12-plus points, four-plus assist outings. Over that four-game stretch, McIntosh has logged a four-to-one assist to turnover ratio (20 assists – five turnovers), while scoring just over 13 points per outing.
- Senior forward and team-captain Chuck Hannah made his return from injury in the contest, finishing the night with a team-high seven rebounds, adding four points and a blocked shot in just under 20 minutes.
- Darius Burford added nine points, five assists and three steals in 35 minutes of action. Burford has now posted at least two steals in three consecutive games.
- Hunter Woods and Zac Ervin combined for 12 points and nine rebounds on the night.
- Elon held a staggering 47-7 advantage in bench points and a 12-9 advantage in threes made.
 
UP NEXT
Elon will be back in action on Saturday, Dec. 11, when it travels to Chapel Hill, N.C. for an 8 p.m. matchup with North Carolina. That contest will be streamed live on ACC Network.