HIGH POINT, N.C. – The Panther defense locked down the Qubein Center in historic fashion as High Point defeated Campbell to claim sole possession of second place in the Big South women's basketball standings.
Skyler Curran led HPU with 16 points while
Jordan Edwards added 13 points, eight rebounds, five assists, and four steals.
Site: Qubein Arena
Score: High Point 63, Campbell 47
Records: High Point (11-12, 9-4), Campbell (13-11, 8-5)
Head coach
Chelsea Banbury: "Obviously I'm happy with the outcome of the game. I'm really proud of how our girls played; this was a big game for both teams being that we had the same record going in, so we knew that it was going to be a high-intensity game. I thought our girls showed up ready, especially in the first half. I think we really bought into the defensive game plan and made things tough for Campbell on the offensive end, especially in the first half. I do give Campbell a lot of credit though, they came out the second half, and they were ready. They definitely weren't going to lay down, and they hit big shots. They crashed the boards, and they got inside, so they had a great third quarter. But I'm proud of how our girls responded, we stayed together and we were able to come out with a win."
High Point made a statement early on in the game by forcing Campbell to commit two shot clock violations in its first two possessions. After giving up a Camel layup, HPU went on a 15-0 run with three-pointers from
Claire Wyatt,
Jenson Edwards, and
Skyler Curran. Curran also added a layup in the run.
HPU finished the first quarter shooting nearly 55 percent from the floor and 43 percent from three-point range.
The Panthers picked up where they left off to start the second period, tallying the first nine points. Curran knocked down a jumped and another triple before
Jordan Edwards hit a pull up jumper to put HPU up 22-7 with 6:04 to play in the half. Curran made another jumper on the next possession to close out the run.
After giving up Campbell's only four points in the quarter, the defense tightened up to hold the Camels scoreless for the last three and a half minutes of the half. Wyatt tallied six of the final eight Panther points in the half, including a deep field goal at the buzzer.
High Point held Campbell to 11 first-half points, the least by an opponent in conference play in the HPU NCAA Division I era.
HPU made four free throws to open the second half but the Camels made back-to-back three-pointers to pull within 36-18 within the first two minutes. Another three-pointer, layup, and two free throws from the visitors cut the HPU lead to 15 halfway through the period. An
Anna Hager triple with 3:26 left pushed the Panther lead back to 18 points.
High Point and Campbell closed the quarter by trading baskets, but HPU still held the 49-34 lead heading into the final period.
The Camels posted the first five points of the quarter, taking the ball to the basket for a layup before knocking down a three-pointer to pull within 49-39. A 6-2 Panther run helped push the lead back to 14 as
Jordan Edwards had two field goals and Curran added another drive to the basket.
Nakyah Terrell also added a layup and two free throws down the stretch to give High Point the 59-46 lead with 1:46 to play. Wyatt and
Jordan Edwards closed out the game with a layup apiece in the final 1:15 to give HPU the 16-point win.
Up Next: High Point is set to take on Longwood on Saturday, February 11
th. Tip-off between the Panthers and the Lancers is set for 2:00 p.m. in Farmville.
#H3U x #GoHPU
