Catamounts bounce back with a 73-72 win over Campbell

Cullowhee, NC – Kehinde Obasuyi And AC Carter Overall, they scored 46 of Western Carolina's 73 points on Thursday night, but they were two free throws from the transfer post Mercy package That ultimately sealed the deal as the Catamounts rallied in the fourth quarter for a thrilling 73-72 victory over Campbell in a non-conference game earlier in the season on Ingles Court at the Ramsey Center.

The Catamounts improved to 2-0 for the third time since the 2015 season. WCU also avenged a road loss in Buies Creek a season ago by picking up its second straight win against the Fighting Camels in Cullowhee.

Obasuyi and Carter both eclipsed the 20-point mark in the second game of the season with 24 and 22, respectively, while three Catamounts scored in double figures. Jada Burton added 10 points off the bench in the winning effort.

Western Carolina did most of its damage from distance, finishing the win with 10 of 22 points and 3-pointers. Obasuyi, Carter and Mercy package However, everyone made two or more 3-point shots Jada Burton The strike from deep opened the fourth quarter and cut the Camel lead to 1. Conversely, the Catamount defense was strong at the rim, limiting Campbell to a 3-for-17 mark from long range. The Camels did most of their damage inside, earning 46 of their points in the paint.

A running game:

Campbell opened the second game of the season strong, quickly jumping out to a 6-0 lead as the Catamounts tried to gain a foothold. Tyja beans and Obasuyi got the WCU offense going with Beans forcing a steal and scoring the transit bucket for the Purple and Gold's first shot of the night. Obasuyi then recorded her first rebound of the day before assisting Beans on another shot as the Catamounts recovered. After the Camels' first scoring drive, WCU went on a 17-8 run to take a three-point lead in the second quarter.

Both teams posted strong offensive numbers in the second quarter, although WCU controlled the score, going 4 of 6 from distance with Pack hitting on both 3-point attempts in the quarter. Carter and Obasuyi played the entire second quarter and combined for 15 of the team's 24 points in the quarter as WCU extended its lead to 11 with 1:51 left before halftime. The Camels took a late lead and trailed by just seven points at the end of the half.

The Catamounts opened the third period on the right foot as Pack forced a turnover that allowed Obasuyi to extend the lead to nine early in the quarter. However, the Camels were undeterred and chipped away at the Catamount lead, eventually ending the game at 49-02 with 4:02 left in the fourth. Campbell took the lead for the first time since the 6:38 mark of the second quarter when Hadleigh Dill knocked down a free throw, sparking a late-quarter surge as the Camels took a 4-point lead heading into the final 10 minutes .

Campbell's lead grew to eight before a WCU timeout occurred with 3:30 left in the night. Carter came out of the timeout and sank two three-pointers in a row to cut the deficit to two with 2:40 left. A Jada Burton The free throw brought the Catamounts back within one point, while Obasuyi gave WCU the lead again with 2:02 left.

The two teams traded a one-point lead until Gemma Nunez hit her second of two shots from the charity stripe to give the Camels a two-shot lead with 17 seconds left. With 13 seconds left, Carter almost made the “and-one” but missed both free throws, tying the score at 71. Gianni Boone gave Campbell a 72-71 lead late with 1 of 2 free throws, but Pack put the Purple and Gold ahead again after securing both free throws. The visitors received their final shot attempt of the night with ten seconds left when Jessica Woods attempted a mid-range jumper to clinch the win. Freshmen Taj Hunter He reached out in front of the sophomore and blocked the shot, but it bounced off the rim and rolled out of bounds as time expired.

Catamount Celebrities:

* AC Carter And Kehinde Obasuyi Both scored more than 20 points in a 73-72 win over the Camels. Thursday night's win was the first game in which two Catamounts scored 20+ points since a double OT loss to ETSU in the 2022-23 season (Kyla Allison – 23, Endia Holliday – 21). Both Catamounts scores of 22 and 24, respectively, were career highs;

* The win is the 12th one-possession victory as a head coach Jonathan Tsipis' Career. Eight of these were decided by one point;

* The Catamounts are now 12-13 all-time with the Campbell Camels, defending the home court in the last two meetings at Cullowhee;

* WCU is off to a 2-0 start for the first time since the 2022-23 season. The team's second win of the 2022-23 season was a 48-47 home victory over the Winthrop Eagles.

Next are the catamounts:

Western Carolina goes on the road for the remainder of November with six straight road games to close out the first month of the season. The road trip begins with a visit to Virginia, where the Catamounts will face the Radford Highlanders on Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m