High Point Holds On To Edge Campbell 79-76

HIGH POINT, N.C. — Joe Knight scored 21 points and Danny Gathings added 18 to help High Point hold off Campbell 79-76 on Saturday night at the Millis Center.
The Panthers, playing at home for the first time this season, improved to 3-6, while Campbell dropped to 3-5. The victory gives HPU a split of the season series following Campbell's 99-80 win in Buies Creek on Dec. 17.
HPU led by as many as 11 in the first half and took a 38-32 lead to intermission, but the Camels put together a 16-6 run during the first six minutes of the second half and took a 48-44 advantage on a three-pointer by Dominique Klein with 14:28 to play.
The Panthers battled back and regained the lead on a layup by Ron Barrow with 10:32 left and led 52-50. HPU did not trail again.
High Point increased its lead to as many as eight over the next several minutes, but the Camels battled back and got within 77-76 on a three-pointer by Tarick Johnson with 22 seconds to go. But Dustin Van Weerdhuizen made a pair of clutch foul shots to give HPU a 79-76 lead, and the Camels couldn't get a shot off at the other end before time expired.
Johnson led all scorers with 26 points, while Jonte' Edwards added 12 points and former HPU guard Brooks Lee posted 10 points for Campbell. Johnson, who was named Atlantic Sun Conference Player of the Week on Monday, topped the 20-point mark for the fourth-straight game. Derek Gray came off the bench to score six points, deal six assists (with no turnovers) and make four steals in 18 minutes of action.
Barrow also scored in double-figures for the Panthers (14 points), while Gathings' 18-point, 10-rebound performance was his third-straight double-double.
Campbell shot 68 percent from the floor (17-25) in the second half and 52.8 percent (28-53) for the game, but the Camels committed 11 of their 15 turnovers after intermission. High Point, which shot an even 50 percent from the field (31-62), held a 38-27 advantage on the glass.
Prior to the game, High Point was one of just two NCAA Division I squads (St. Francis, N.Y., is the other) to have not yet played a home game.
Campbell returns to action on Monday when it hosts William and Mary at Carter Gym at 7:00 p.m. The Fighting Camels are 3-0 at home this season and are outscoring their opponents by an average of 12 points in those games. [Box Score]