Camels hold off Blue Hose 68-63 in 1st round
By Campbell Athletics
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Clutch free throw shooting and two defensive stops down the stretch lifted Campbell to a 68-63 win over Presbyterian Wednesday in the first round of the Big South Championship at Bojangles' Coliseum.
Seventh-seeded Campbell (14-17) advances to Friday's 6:00 p.m. quarterfinal against second seed Longwood (20-11).
Jay Pal scored 19 points, hit 8-of-10 free throws, and made three steals – one that protected a two-point lead with less than 15 seconds remaining. Big South freshman of the year
Anthony Dell'Orso added 15 points, plus 9 rebounds, while
Ricky Clemons (13) and
Laurynas Vaistaras (11) also hit double figures for the Camels, who made five more foul shots (22-30) than the Blue Hose attempted (7-17).
After Pal made 1-of-2 from the line for a 66-63 lead with 12.8 seconds to play, Crosby James' potential game-tying three was on line, but too long. Vaistaras grabbed the rebound – his fifth of the game – and knocked down two from the line for the final margin.
James came off the bench to lead Presbyterian (5-27) with 15 points, including 4-of-6 beyond the arc. Owen McCormack and Jalen Forrest added 11 each for the Blue Hose, who made 10-of-22 threes (.455), but could not avoid an 18th-straight loss.
"When you play in March, your goal is just to advance," said Campbell head coach
Kevin McGeehan. "Each time it appeared that we might be able to build a bit of a cushion, PC just kept playing and made some shots. Give our guys credit, they continued to battle, stay together and stay poised."
In a game that included 10 lead changes and seven ties, the Camels did not go in front for good until Pal made two from the stripe with 4:54 to play. During a stretch when PC missed 8 of 9 shots, CU was unable to extend the margin beyond two possessions.
On the night, Campbell shot 44.7 percent (21-47) and made 4-of-13 threes, but finished with an 11-5 edge in points off turnovers and outscored PC in the paint 32-24.
Presbyterian shot 45 percent overall, but committed 14 turnovers and missed 10 of 17 from the line.
In a first half of runs, the Camels used a 12-0 burst to take a nine-point lead and held a 34-27 advantage at the break. Pal scored 12 points before the break, while Dell'Orso added eight, plus six rebounds.
The Camels shot 46 percent from the floor and made 8-of-10 from the line, while PC shot 42 percent, but just 2-of-3 from the stripe.
NOTES
- Campbell improved to 4-0 all-time vs. Presbyterian in Big South tournament play, 18-19 all-time in the event.
- Since returning to the Big South from the Atlantic Sun Conference in 2011-12, Campbell owns a 10-11 record in the league tourney.
2023 Hercules Tires Big South Championship (at Charlotte)
Wednesday, March 1 – First Round (ESPN+)
#9 Charleston Southern 72, #8 High Point 70
#7 Campbell 68, #10 Presbyterian 62
Friday, March 3 – Quarterfinals (ESPN+)
#1 UNC Asheville vs. #9 Charleston Southern (12:00)
#4 USC Upstate vs. #5 Gardner-Webb (2:00)
#2 Longwood vs. #7 Campbell (6:00)
#3 Radford vs. #6 Winthrop (8:00)
Saturday, March 4 – Semifinals (ESPN+)
QF 1 winner vs. QF 2 winner (12:00)
QF 3 winner vs. QF 4 winner (2:00)
Sunday, March 5 – Final (ESPN2)
Semifinal winners (1:00)