CHARLESTON, S.C. - Charleston Southern closes out the road portion of the 2019-20 regular season this week as the Buccaneers make the trek to High Point, N.C. and the Millis Center for a Wednesday night showdown against the High Point Panthers. Tipoff between the Bucs and HPU is set for 7 p.m. on ESPN+.

The Buccaneers (4-23, 2-16 Big South) are playing in a rare Wednesday game this week as the team's usual Tuesday contest has been adjusted due to the start of the 2020 Hercules Tires Big South Men's Basketball Championships. It marks just the second Wednesday the Bucs have played this season with CSU previously lining up against Western Carolina back on December 4, 2019.

CSU is currently 0-1 this season in Wednesday night contests as the Bucs fell back in the early season matchup against the Catamounts. The Bucs' fourth-quarter comeback attempt fell short in the early contest as WCU held off a late stretch run in the 69-64 CSU defeat.

The Bucs are still fighting for tournament seeding heading into the final week of the regular season as CSU could end up as either the No. 10 or No. 11 seed in the 2020 Hercules Tires Big South Women's Basketball Championships field. CSU is looking to bounce back from a pair of tough losses over the last week as the Bucs fell at home to Campbell (43-42) and at Hampton (66-57).

This past Saturday against the Pirates, CSU nearly overcame a large first-half deficit as the Buccaneers fell on the road in Big South play to Hampton University, 66-57.

The Buccaneers trailed 28-6 with 3:13 remaining in the first quarter as Hampton utilized a 28-4 run on their way to building a 22-point lead. The Pirates (17-10, 13-5) connected on 11 of their first 12 shots in the game on their way to building the early advantage.

CSU's defense took over late in the first quarter as the Bucs held the Pirates scoreless for a little over five minutes in mounting the first half comeback. Kelsie Ruff put together 12 first-half points in leading the comeback as the Bucs closed out the half on a 7-0 run to cut the deficit down to 39-32 at the break.

The Bucs narrowed the gap all the way down to four points following the Godfrey jumper at the 4:58 mark in the third quarter as CSU cut the lead down to 45-41. The Pirates took over from the free throw line over the next three minutes as Hampton converted eight consecutive shots in rebuilding their double-digit advantage.

CSU was unable to bring the game back within single digits until late in the fourth quarter as the Pirates completed the season sweep over the Bucs with the win.

High Point (14-13, 12-6 Big South) currently projects as the No. 4 seed heading into the postseason as the Panthers welcome the Bucs for the return trip of their previous matchup back on January 11. The Panthers topped the Bucs 84-70 behind Camryn Brown's 26-point effort, while Skyler Curran added 19 points and 10 rebounds in the HPU win.

The Panthers are fighting to hold on to their first round bye as High Point enters the midweek contest on a three-game winning streak topping Radford (64-63), Presbyterian (79-71), and Longwood (86-79) on their way to solidifying their status in the conference tournament.

The Panthers' most recent win against the Lancers was highlighted by the play of Curran and Brown again as the HPU duo combined for 44 points in the 86-79 win over Longwood. Curran posted a 24-point, eight-rebound stat line in the contest, while Brown's 20 points and eight assists highlighted a day that High Point shot 46.9% from the floor and 41.4% from the three-point line in the win.

Tierra Steede paces CSU's scoring and rebounding on the season with 9.8 points and 7.0 rebounds per season as the senior forward continues to press the Bucs' advantages inside. Carmella Walker adds 9.5 points per game and is third in the Big South with 2.3 steals per game on the year.

Sharita Godfrey is also among the Bucs' leaders with 8.9 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. Kelsie Ruff is coming off a 15-point performance against Hampton as the junior guard led the Bucs in scoring in the contest. Tyra Wright and Ahlea Myers have also been double-digit scorers for CSU over the last few games as well.

High Point's duo of Curran and Brown sit second and third among the Big South's leading scorers on the season. Curran's 17.1 points put her second in the Big South on the year, while Brown's 16.4 per game mark her the third-highest scorer in the conference heading into the final two games of the regular season.

Curran is also among the Big South rebounding leaders with 6.6 per game, while Brown is second in the conference with 5.0 assists per game. Brown (77) and Curran (75) are also atop the conference in three-pointers made on the season this year.

Up Next
Charleston Southern closes out the 2019-20 regular season on Saturday, March 7, at home against Longwood University. Tipoff between the Buccaneers and the Lancers is set for 3 p.m. at the Buccaneer Field House. The Bucs will be hosting their Senior Day festivities prior to tipoff, while also celebrating 90s Day in the Field House.