High Point Central’s well-oiled machine was more like a runaway train Friday night, barreling to a 14-point halftime lead before Southwest Guilford knew what hit it.

The Bison parlayed their 40-26 advantage at the break into a 71-58 victory over the Cowboys in the teams’ first meeting since their High Point Classic thriller over the holidays.

“They got too many second and third shots in that first half,” Southwest coach Guy Shavers said. “We can’t give up 40 points in a half and win ball games.”

For the Bison, the points began at the defensive end of the floor.

Derek Grant, Drew Adams and the rest of the Bison backcourt blanketed the Cowboys guards to generate looks in the open floor.

A game-high 19 points from Grant and 11 from center Shaq Bethea were scored mostly from frequent fastbreaks in the first half..

“We’ve been working on our defense. I think that’s what we are, a defensive team,” Patrick Battle said. “We know that if we get out there and play, we can turn those opportunities into baskets.”

The Bison (6-7, 3-2 Piedmont Triad 4A) enjoyed a lead in excess of 15 points for all but two minutes of the second half. Central attempted a variation of keep-away in the third and fourth quarters.

After becoming a bit sloppy toward the end of the third quarter, Battle urged his players to regroup and once again attack the basket. Quality execution on the first few possessions of the final frame allowed Central to return its attention to bleeding the clock.

“With everything but the last four minutes, I was very happy,” Central coach Patrick Battle concluded. “We’ve been in a lot of close games (in contrast to Friday’s tilt), so I think we’re very comfortable executing our offense.”

DeAndre Brown and Andrew Bostic led the Cowboys (4-10, 1-3) with 16 points apiece.