HIGH POINT, N.C. – The William & Mary men's basketball team suffered a season-opening 100-66 setback at High Point on Friday night. The Panthers shot 60.7 percent from the floor to outdistance the Tribe.
 
Both teams started hot as W&M hit six of first eight shots. Senior guard David Cohn scored the Tribe's first five points and found sophomore Justin Pierce for a 3-pointer at the 15:50 mark to give W&M a 15-12 lead. Cohn factored in five of the Tribe's first six made field goals, adding three assists to his five points.
 
On the other side, High Point made nine of first 10 shots and used an 11-0 run to open up a double-digit lead. Andre Fox scored the first eight of the run to jumpstart the Panthers. Jahaad Proctor's 3-pointer at the 11:35 mark extended the margin to 26-16 and forced a W&M timeout.
 
The Tribe closed to within six, 36-30, on a pair of Pierce free throws with five minutes left in the half. High Point responded with a 10-2 run and led by 12 at the break. The Panthers scored the first seven points of the second half and never looked back.  
 
Individual Player Spotlights
Pierce led W&M with 18 points on 7-of-11 shooting to go with seven rebounds, two steals and two blocked shots. Both his point and rebounding totals were career-highs. Knight tallied 15 points, seven rebounds and six blocked shots.
 
For High Point, Jahaad Proctor (28), Andre Fox (22) and Brandonn Kamga (18) combined for 68 of the Panthers' 100 points. The trio was 23-of-36 from the field, 8-of-13 from 3-point range and 14-of-16 at the free throw line. 
 
Inside the Numbers
- High Point shot 60.7 percent (37-of-51) from the field compared to just 37.7 percent (20-of-53) for W&M. The Panthers field goal percentage was the highest against the Tribe since 2014 when Charleston connected on 64.2 percent.
- The Tribe shot 77.8 percent (21-of-27) from the floor line.
- HPU held a 38-29 advantage on the glass and both teams tallied 10 offensive rebounds. W&M enjoyed a 12-8 advantage in second chance points.
- W&M shot just 22.7 percent (5-of-22) from 3-point range compared to 53.3 percent (8-of-15) for the Panthers.
 
Notes
Pierce made his first collegiate start against High Point … He tallied career-highs in points (18), rebounds (7), blocked shots (2), field goals (7), field goals attempts (11) and minutes played (35) … Knight was 11-of-14 at the free throw line … Both his free throws made and attempted totals were career highs …  Knight blocked six shots on the evening, which is tied for the ninth-best single-game total in W&M history … He is one of only three players in program history with at least two games of six or more blocked shots … Sophomore Matt Milon, who sat out as a transfer from Boston College last season, scored eight points off the bench in his Tribe debut, playing 27 minutes.
 
Up Next
The Tribe hosts in-state foe Hampton in its home opener on Wednesday, Nov. 15. The contest is set for a 7 p.m., tip from Kaplan Arena. It marks the 20th time in the last 23 years the two teams have met. The game will be streamed for FREE in HD on Tribe Athletics TV via Stretch Internet. Tribe fans can also catch the men's basketball action over the Tribe Radio Network with Jay Colley and Charlie Woollum on the call. The Tide 92.3 FM and 107.9 Bach FM are the flagship stations of the Tribe Radio Network and the audio is also available over the Web at TribeAthletics.com. Season and single-game tickets as well as flex plans are now on sale at TribeAthletics.com. Click HERE for complete men's basketball ticket information and HERE to purchase tickets.

Tribe fans can catch up on William & Mary men's basketball with the 'Luncheon with Tony' series starting on Tuesday, Nov. 14. The monthly luncheons featuring head coach Tony Shaver will be held at Anna's Brick Oven and gives fans an inside look at Tribe basketball. The luncheon will include a buffet for $13.50. Anna's Brick Oven is located at 2021 Richmond Road in Williamsburg. The 'Luncheon with Tony' series provides fans the opportunity to get Coach Shaver's thoughts on the Tribe's season and upcoming games as well as talk W&M basketball with select Tribe players and the Green and Gold coaching staff.