Winthrop has no trouble with Liberty in 74-58 win

ROCK HILL, S.C. (AP) Xavier Cooks had 22 points with six rebounds and Winthrop cruised to a 74-58 win over Liberty on Saturday.

The Eagles have won three straight following a three-game losing streak in Big South Conference play. After starting the season 3-1, the Flames (5-15, 2-5) have won just two of 14 since.

Cooks hit 8 of 13 field goals including three 3-pointers. Jimmy Gavin finished with 19 points and Keon Johnson had 12 for Winthrop (12-6, 4-3), which shot 52 percent from the field.

Liberty scored the first five points of the game but Winthrop took over from there, putting together an 11-0 run and built a 31-22 lead at the break.

Bjorn Broman's 3-pointer for the Eagles extended the lead to double figures (40-28), and a Gavin layup pushed it to a game-high 19 (71-52) with 1:45 to play.

John Dawson led Liberty with 15 points.