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Box Score (PDF)

BUIES CREEK, N.C. – Andrew Ryan scored 21 points to lead four Camels in double figures and Campbell defeated Gardner-Webb 78-59 Monday night at Gore Arena.

The Camels (8-14, 2-7 Big South) led for the final 30:33 of play and by double digits for the last 7:51 against a Gardner-Webb (13-9, 5-4) that earlier this year claimed wins over Clemson and Purdue.

Ryan hit 9-of-14 shots from the field and grabbed eight rebounds for the Camels, who shot 62 percent from the field in the final period (13-21), 53 percent (26-49) for the game.  Reco McCarter added 18 points on 7-of-11 shooting plus three steals, while D.J. Mason had 13 points.  Kyre' Hamer scored 10 points, including 6-of-6 from the line, with nine rebounds, six assists and four steals for Campbell, which ended a seven-game losing streak.

Jerome Hill led the Runnin' Bulldogs with 16 points (8-of-10 free throws) and 13 rebounds.  Adonis Burbage added 12 and Jarvis Davis 10, while Tyler Strange dealt 10 assists for his seventh double-figure outing of the year.  GWU shot just 32 percent in the final stanza, 42 percent for the contest.

"It really comes down to being tough.  We have to be tough all the time.  Toughness comes in a lot of different shapes and sizes. It might be defending the post, rebounding, diving on the floor.  It might be just being tough enough and smart enough to execute what you need to at the right time."

After losing six of seven games by single digits in conference play, the Camels jumped to a 37-30 halftime lead.  After Davis' triple cut the gap to 37-33 with 19:10 remaining, Ryan capped a 9-0 CU burst with a trey push the margin to 46-33 with 16:27 to go. 

Gardner-Webb was only able to cut the margin to eight (56-48) once after Strange canned a pair from the line with 8:14 to play.  However, Nehemiah Mabson found McCarter on a back door cut for a two-handed jam and the Bulldogs never drew any closer.  The margin reached 24 on McCarter's jam with 1:52 to play.

"That's a good team we just beat," said Campbell head coach Kevin McGeehan.  "I give my guys a lot of credit for staying together but also letting their coaches guide them through this tough time.  It's very easy to get splintered and doubt can creep in from anywhere.  We just tried to remind them that for the most part, it's been only one or two things that have kept us from winning a couple of games and that anything is possible."

Campbell shot 46 percent from the floor in the opening half, but held a 12-0 edge in second-chance points to take a 37-30 lead at the break.  Ryan had nine points and Hamer eight before intermission.  Hill led GWU with 11 first-half points, but the Bulldogs committed nine turnovers in the opening stanza, which led to 10 CU points.

The Camels improved to 7-4 at home this year while dealing Gardner-Webb its second-straight loss.  Now with 909 career points, Ryan moved past Kyle Vejraska (900 from 2006-10) into 18th place on Campbell's all-time Division I era (since '77-78) scoring list.

CU also ran its all-time record against the Bulldogs in Gore Arena (which opened in 2008-09) to 3-0, including a triple-overtime victory in 2013.  CU has won five of the last nine meetings overall in the series, but the road team has not claimed a victory since both teams claimed away wins in 2005-06 when both were members of the Atlantic Sun Conference.  CU re-joined the Big South in 2011-12.

Campbell returns to action Saturday in a 4:30 p.m. start at UNC Asheville.