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Hot-Shooting Florida Atlantic Defeats Campbell 97-88

BUIES CREEK, N.C. – Florida Atlantic shot 66 percent for the game and made 15-of-23 three-pointers in a 97-88 Atlantic Sun Conference victory over Campbell Tuesday night at Carter Gym.

The Owls (8-7, 7-1) won their fourth-straight game and moved into a tie with Kennesaw State atop the league standings.

Kevin Green led FAU with 22 points, hitting 5-of-7 triples and 7-of-8 from the line, while DeAndre Rice added 19, including 5-of-8 from long distance. Carlos Monroe came off the bench to chip in 16 points on 6-of-8 shooting, plus 4-of-5 from the stripe, while Rodney Webb had 12 points. Fred Marshall added nine, plus a game-high 10 rebounds.

Jake Wohlfeil led Campbell (5-10, 4-4) with a season-high 20 points, connecting on 6-of-7 threes on the night. Diego Aguiar came off the bench to add a season-best 16, plus a team-leading 8 boards. Eric Smith had 11, and Ledell Eackles added 11, plus a season-high 11 assists.

FAU shot 71.9 percent (23-32) in the first half, including 10-of-14 (.714) from 3-point range and led by as many as 21 in the opening period. Green knocked down 4-of-5 treys in the first half, while Quinton Young scored all 9 of his points on 3-of-3 shooting from downtown before the break.

The Owls built a cushion with a 12-0 run in the first half to turn a 9-6 deficit into an 18-9 advantage in just 3:30. Young's trey pushed the margin to 46-25 with 5:30 to go in the opening period. The Camels cut the gap to 54-41 with 0:18 left, but Rice knocked down a trey in the final 4 seconds to give FAU a 57-41 advantage at the break.

Campbell cut into Florida Atlantic's lead midway through the final period. After Rice's bucket gave the Owls a 21-point cushion (79-58) with 10:53 to go, the Camels answered with a 15-1 run.

Reggie Bishop's jumper brought Campbell within 80-73 with 5:55 remaining. CU trailed by five (93-88) with just 0:35 left, but Eackles missed a runner in the lane. Green and Marshall both hit two foul shots in the last 0:25 for FAU's third road win over four outings in league play.

FAU hit 33-of-50 field goals on the night and shot 65.2 percent from 3-point territory while canning 16-of-21 (.762) free throws. Campbell shot 50.7 percent from the field, including 12-of-30 (.400) beyond the arc, but made just 8-of-16 from the line.

The Owls held a 32-26 edge on the glass, marking the first time that the Camels have been out-rebounded by an A-Sun opponent this year. Campbell committed a season-low 8 turnovers, while forcing 18 FAU miscues that CU converted into 22 points.

Campbell's fourth sellout crowd in eight home dates this year saw former North Carolina head coach return to the Tar Heel State in his first year in charge of the FAU program.

The Fighting Camels now embark on a two-game swing to North Florida (Thursday) and Jacksonville (Saturday). [ Box Score ]