BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. - Charleston Southern played their last game of the 08-09 regular season, coming up short 59-68 vs. the Gardner-Webb Runnin' Bulldogs Saturday, at Paul Porter Arena. The Bucs led by one at halftime, but fell victim to 36 percent shooting from the floor and 15 percent from behind the arc in the second half. With the loss CSU dropped to 9-20 on the season and 4-14 in the Big South, while Gardner-Webb improves to 13-16 for the year with a 9-9 mark in the conference.

Senior Giedrius Knysas ended his last regular season on a high, leading all scorers with 17 points on 8-10 shooting to go along with 6 rebounds. Jamarco Warren and Omar Carter also chipped in with 15 and 10 points, respectively. The Bulldogs also put three in double figures, led by C.J. Hailey with 15 points.

Warren put the Bucs on the board first with a layup, which was followed by a pair of ties in the first few minutes. CSU was down just one with 15:45 on the clock, but Gardner-Webb surged for a 15-5 run, taking a 21-13 lead at the 10:49 mark. The Bucs came back with 8 unanswered, capped off by a Knysas layup.

CSU managed to whittle down the Bulldog advantage, taking their first lead since the opening basket with 6 seconds remaining in the half. A pair of free throws from Warren made the score 32-31, as the Bucs escaped into the locker room with the lead.

Warren had 9 points, 3 rebounds, and 2 assists for CSU heading into the intermission. The Bucs also out rebounded the Bulldogs 20-16 in the first half, 8 of which came on the offensive end.

Gardner-Webb came out of the gate with an 8-0 run, establishing a lead that they would not let go of. CSU traded baskets, but couldn't slow down the Bulldogs, as they extended their lead with 47-36 score and 13:37 left in the game.

The Bulldogs led by as many as 15 in the game on different occasions, holding a double-digit lead for most of the second half. The Bucs showed some life with a Carter three, making it a 46-58 score with 7:26 on the clock.

Gardner-Webb however, held on to their lead and CSU wasn't able to cut it to single digits until 23 seconds remaining in the game with three Warren free throws and a 57-65 score. The Bulldogs would hit their foul shots en route to a 59-68 final score and loss for the Bucs.

CSU just missed the playoffs this year, losing in a tiebreak situation with High Point. The Big South has released the tournament seeds and post season competition will begin on Tuesday, March 3rd.