WASHINGTON (AP) -- Louis Ford saved 13 of his 15 second half points for the last three minutes, and Will Gant added a career-high 24 points, leading Howard to a 86-76 win over Longwood College Saturday afternoon.
Howard (2-3) held leads of 11 points twice in the second half, but both times Longwood (0-7) rallied on the scoring of Brandon Giles and Michael Jefferson. The Lancers cut the deficit to 71-68 with 3:00 remaining. That's when Ford took over.
The junior from Cambridge, Mass. hit a 3-pointer, converted on four of four from the free throw line and added three more baskets to help the Bison forge to a 15-8 run.
Equally important for Howard were several key baskets from Gant who was 10 for 10 at the free throw line.
Longwood, which starts two freshmen, two sophomores, and a junior played strong for such a young team, but mistakes and mental lapses kept them from their first win.
Maurice Sumter led the Lancers with 19 points, while Jefferson and Giles contributed 18 and 13 respectively.
