BUIES CREEK, N.C. – David Efianayi tied his career high with 31 points, 26 after halftime, and Gardner-Webb rallied to defeat Campbell 82-80 in overtime Wednesday night at Gore Arena.
Liam O'Reilly added 15 points; while D.J. Laster and Jaheam Cornwall added 13 apiece for the Runnin' Bulldogs (7-8, 2-0 Big South), who overcame an 18-point deficit in the first half to win their fourth-straight game.
Marcus Burk led Campbell (6-8, 0-2) with 20 points;
Chris Clemons added 18,
Andrew Eudy a career-high 17 and
Shane Whitfield 10 for the Camels, who dropped back-to-back games for the first time this season.
Campbell led by nine (39-30) at halftime and 65-53 when Eudy canned a three-pointer with 6:29 to play. However, Efianayi scored seven points in a 12-0 run and GWU drew even on Patrick Zeck's bucket with 3:48 remaining.
Clemons made both ends of a 1-and-1 to put the Camels ahead 71-68 with 36.7 seconds left in regulation, but Cornwall's trey tied the game at 71 with 25 seconds remaining. The Camels held for the final shot and Clemons drove to the hoop in traffic, but missed and the game went into overtime.
Burk's three pushed the Camels ahead 76-73 with 3:10 to go in the extra period, but Efianayi's drive to the hoop and Zeck's lay-in gave the Runnin' Bulldogs the lead they did not surrender. Efianyi then hit 5-of-6 from the line in the last 28 seconds to seal the win.
Campbell finished the night shooting 44 percent from the floor (26-59), made 8-of-25 threes (.320) and 20-of-26 (.769) from the line. Gardner-Webb shot 47.5 percent (29-61) from the field, hit 8-of-29 triples (.276) and 16-of-22 from the stripe, while finishing with a 42-31 edge on the boards and a 14-7 advantage in second-chance points.
Efianayi made 11-of-18 shots from the floor and 7-of-9 from the line, while leading eight assists. Zeck pulled down a game-high 12 rebounds.
Burk reached the 20-point mark for the eighth time in the last 12 games. Whitfield added nine rebounds and six assists, while Eudy eclipsed his 16-point effort last Saturday at Asheville by knocking down 7-of-11 from the floor.
The nation's 10th-leading scorer, Clemons registered his NCAA Division I-leading 62nd-game in double figures and moved into fourth place on Campbell's all-time scoring list with 1712 points in 77 career outings.
Campbell hit 10 of its first 18 shots and took a 31-13 lead when
Ja'Cor Nelson made a pair of free throws with 7:50 left in the opening half. The Runnin' Bulldogs, however, answered with a 15-2 burst capped by O'Reilly's three that trimmed the gap to 33-28 with 3:48 left before the break.
Campbell led 39-30 at halftime after shooting 44 percent (12-27) in the opening period, including 5-of-11 from 3-point range. Burk had 11 first-half points and Clemons 9, plus 3 assists for the Camels, who made 10-of-15 from the line.
The Camels return to action Saturday when they host Winthrop at 2:00 p.m. in a re-match of last year's Big South title game.
