Longwood holds back Liberty's surge, wins 85-71

Jan 17, 2015, 07:49 pm

FARMVILLE, Va. -- Shaquille Johnson scored a career-high 31 points, and Longwood held back a late Liberty surge to win 85-71 on Saturday night.

Johnson hit four 3-pointers on his way to 13-of-23 shooting. He added eight rebounds, three steals, and five assists. Quincy Taylor had 21 points, Ryan Badowski scored 15, and Leron Fisher chipped in 10 for Longwood (6-13, 2-4 Big South). The Lancers shot 46 percent from the field and 16 of 29 for 55.2 percent from deep.

Longwood led 41-30 at the break and had its largest lead, 73-50 with 10:25 to play. Liberty chipped away, pulling within 78-69 at the 4:17 mark. Liberty then missed 10 of its final 11 shots, and Longwood made 5 of 6 free throws and capped the game with Johnson's dunk.

David Andoh scored 24 points to lead Liberty (6-13, 0-6).