Rock Hill, S.C. – Winthrop is off to its best start in program history at 6-0 after it held off Campbell for an 84-83, Wednesday afternoon at the Winthrop Coliseum. It will be a quick turnaround for both teams as they will face off again on Thursday, Dec. 31 at 1 p.m.
WINTHROP (6-0, 3-0 Big South)
TOP CONTRIBUTORS
CAMPBELL (4-4, 0-1 Big South)
TOP CONTRIBUTORS
- Jesus Carralero (16 points, 2 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals)
- Jordan Whitfield (17 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal)
- Austin McCullough (16 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals)
FIRST HALF
- Winthrop opened the game with a 4-0 spurt, making two of its first three shots as Micheal Anumba scored at the rim and D.J. Burns Jr. knocked swished a baby hook from the baseline
- However, the Eagles got off to a slow start from the floor, only making two of their first 13 attempts from the floor that included 10 straight misses
- Campbell opened up making 7-of-9 from the floor and held a 16-11 lead nearly midway through the first half
- Winthrop used an 8-0 run to take the lead back and hold a 19-16 advantage after Adonis Arms finished off a short jumper on the break
- The teams traded baskets over the next couple of possessions and with 5:28 left in the half the game was tied 24-24
- Campbell had a chance to regain the lead but Jesus Carralero missed two free throws and the Eagles got two offensive rebounds on its ensuing possession and Charles Falden finally buried a three for a 27-24 lead
- The lead extended to five points after Anumba hit two free throws, but the Camels answered as Milos Stajcic made a short jumper in the lane
- Winthrop outscored the Camels 8-1 over the next minute and a half to grab a double-figure lead at 37-27 with 2:39 left in the half as the run was sparked by threes from Chandler Vaudrin and Falden
- Campbell did chip away before the half as Winthrop led 39-33 at the break
- Winthrop shot just 33 percent from the floor in the first half while Campbell lit up the nets at 64 percent
- The Eagles were 11-of-15 from the foul line in the half and also had 14 second chance points
SECOND HALF
- Campbell scored a quick six points out of the break to tie the game at 39-39 just shy of two minutes in
- Cedric Henderson drained a three on the Camels first possession and Ricky Clemons scored off a drive to cap off the spurt and tie the game
- Eagles answered with a Josh Corbin three from the wing and a jumper by Arms for a 44-39 lead with 16:39 to play
- Campbell didn't cool off as it connected on back-to-back threes from Jordan Whitfield and Austin McCullough to grab a one point lead
- Vaudrin scored in the paint with 13:35 left for a 48-47 lead and over the next two and a half minutes built a nine-point advantage as it held Campbell 0-for-5 from the floor during that stretch
- The Eagles held at least a 2-3 possession lead for the next 10 minutes but it was a five point game with 31 seconds left after Messiah Thompson drove and scored on a short jumper at the rim
- Falden hit two free throws with 28 seconds left but McCullough hit Carralero cutting to the basket to make it a five point game with 20 seconds to play
- It was a three-point game with 1.7 seconds left after Dray Burton scored, but Charles Falden hit 1-of-2 free throws with one second left
- Campbell did inbound the ball after a timeout as McCullough drained a long three as time expired to make it a one-point game
- Winthrop was much better from the floor in the second half at 47 percent while Campbell continued to shoot well at 61 percent
- In the second half alone the Eagles were 26-for-35 at the foul line
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Winthrop finished the game shooting 38 percent while Campbell connected on 62 percent of its shots
- Eagles dominated the boards at +23 (45-22) and finished with 20 offensive rebounds that led to 20 points
- Winthrop finished 37-of-50 from the free throw line while Campbell was 13-for-25 as the teams combined for 63 fouls
- Both teams turned the ball as Winthrop finished with 22 (23 points off turnovers) and Campbell had 20 (26 points off turnovers)
- The Eagles had three players with at least 10 free throw attempts as Vaudrin had the most with 15 as he was 10-of-15
- Vaudrin led the Eagles with 17 points and was 1-of-4 players in double-figures
- Whitfield led Campbell with 17 points and was also 1-of-4 in double-figures
- Eagles were just 5-for-22 behind the arc while Campbell was 8-of-14
- Carralero finished with a career-high 16 points as he also led the Camels with five assists
- Joining Vaudrin in double-figures were Faldein (16), Arms (12) and Anumba (11)
NOTABLES
- The 6-0 start is the best by a Big South Conference member since Radford began the 1990-91 season 8-0 (which is a league best start to a season)
- Winthrop won its 11th straight games dating back to last season as the Eagles have won at least 11 straight games twice in the same calendar year
- The Eagles are 3-0 in league play for a third straight season
- Winthrop tied its season-low with five threes and this is the second straight matchup with Campbell the Eagles finished with just five triples
- Eagles have won the last six games in which they've had only five or six threes in the game
- This was the 5th straight win over the Camels as the Eagles now hold a 22-21 lead in the all-time series
- Winthrop's 50 free throw attempts are a program record for a single-game, breaking the old mark of 49 set on Nov. 29, 1986 against Methodist
- Campbell is the first league opponent to shoot 60 percent from the floor against the Eagles since UNC Asheville did it Feb. 26, 2014 (Eagles won 107-100 in overtime)
- Eagles are now 3-0 to start Big South play for a third straight season
To keep up with the latest news on the Winthrop men's basketball program, follow the Eagles on Twitter (@Winthrop_MBB), Instagram (@Winthrop_MBB) and Facebook (/WinthropEagles).
