Game Notes | @GoCamelsWBB
Feature: Spry, Edwards Provide Lady Camels with Inspiration
BUIES CREEK, N.C. – After a 79-76 victory over High Point on Jan. 12, the Campbell women's basketball teams travels to Longwood on Thursday night at 7 p.m. It will be a matchup of two 4-1 teams in the Big South conference.
Fans that are unable to attend the contest can follow the Lady Camels with live stats, video and in-game updates via Twitter (@GoCamelsWBB).
Campbell stands at 12-4 overall after its win over the Panthers as senior guard Tonisha Baker (High Point, N.C.) totaled a season-high 24 points. The contribution off the bench by junior forward Roslyn Presley (Petersburg, Va.), who registered a career-best 18 points and put in a layup with 20 second remaining, was key for the Lady Camels.
There were four Campbell players in double-digits against High Point for the first time on the campaign as sophomore forward Kiera Gaines (Mechanicsville, Va.) and freshman guard Zena Lovette (High Point, N.C.) added 14 and 10 points, respectively.
The Lady Camels used a big second-half surge to grab a 10-point lead with just over 2:30 remaining before HPU made a run that cut the lead to one, 75-74, with 50 seconds left. The layup by Presley and two made free throws by Baker preserved the win for the home team.
Baker hit the 20-point plateau for the second time this season and during the contest passed Rhonda Mueller (1987-82) with 1,276 points. The High Point, N.C., is now seventh on the Lady Camels charts in points at 1,288.
She needs six field goals made to eclipse the century mark for the fourth time in her career, and would become the fifth Campbell player to accomplish the feat. That list includes April Cromartie (1,892), Felicia Autry (1,624), Antionette Matthews (1,597) and Connie Hall (1,233).
The Lady Camels continue to lead the Big South in 3FG Pct. (.394), assists (16.8), steals (12.7) and assist/turnover ratio (0.9). The team ranks in the top 20 in 3FG Pct. (7th), steals (18th) and assists (20th).
Head coach Wanda Watkins notched her 490th career victory, all of those coming in her 32 seasons at Campbell, against High Point and is approaching the 500-win milestone. She recently notched her 250th conference (A-Sun/Big South) victory vs. Coastal Carolina.
There have been eight meetings in the all-time series between Longwood and Campbell with the home team taking each matchup. The Lady Camels are 5-0 on their home court, while Longwood holds a 3-0 advantage in contests played in Farmville, Va.
Longwood has been the surprise team early in Big South schedule as it has opened with a 4-1 mark, including wins over Radford (57-49), Gardner-Webb (87-75), Winthrop (79-74) and Charleston Southern (67-52). The only setback with a 63-71 loss at Presbyterian. The Lancers are 7-9 overall with non-league victories against Bucknell (60-52), Gardner-Webb (70-62) and Air Force (68-63).
The trio of Chelsea Coward (16.3), Crystal Smith (15.6) and Daeisha Brown (11.9) have averaged at least 10 points per game. Coward has pulled down a team-best 9.1 boards per contest. Dishing out a team-high 66 assists has been Smith, while Brown has registered 31 steals.
As a team, Longwood averages 64.4 points per game on 36.2 percent shooting from the field. The Lancers have a recorded 35.4 rebounds per game and their opponents have a +12.9 rebounding advantage. Turnovers have been a positive for Longwood as it holds a + 3.4 turnover margin, only committing 16.1 per contest.
The Lady Camels return to the court on Saturday with a 2 p.m. contest against league-leading Liberty. Campbell plays its next contest at Gore Arena/John W. Pope, Jr. Convocation Center on Jan. 24 against Radford at 7 p.m.
