Cullowhee, N.C. – Kehinde Obasuyi and AC Carter combined for 46 of Western Carolina's 73 points on Thursday night, but it was two free throws from transfer post Grace Pack that ultimately sealed the deal as the Catamounts rallied in the fourth quarter for a thrilling 73-72 victory over Campbell in early-season nonconference action on Ingles Court at the Ramsey Center.
The Catamounts improved to 2-0 for just the third time since the 2015 season. WCU also avenged a road loss in Buies Creek a season ago while claiming its second-consecutive win over the Fighting Camels in Cullowhee.
Obasuyi and Carter both eclipsed the 20-point plateau in game two of the season with 24 and 22, respectively, as three Catamounts scored in double figures. Jada Burton added 10 points off the bench in the winning effort.
Western Carolina did most of its damage from beyond the arc, finishing 10-of-22 on 3-pointers in the win. Obasuyi, Carter, and Grace Pack each made two or more 3-pointers, though Jada Burton struck from deep to open the fourth quarter to trim the Camel lead to 1. Conversely, the Catamount defense was stout on the perimeter, limiting Campbell to a 3-for-17 mark from range. The Camels did most of their damage inside, earning 46 of their points in the paint.
A Game of Runs:
Campbell opened the second game of the season strong, taking a 6-0 lead quickly as the Catamounts looked to find their footing. Tyja Beans and Obasuyi jump-started the WCU offense with Beans forcing a steal and scoring the transition bucket for the Purple and Gold's first made shot of the night. Obasuyi then recorded her first rebound of the day before assisting Beans on another shot as the Catamounts rallied. After the initial scoring flurry by the Camels, WCU posted a 17-8 run to take a three-point lead into the second quarter.
Both teams posted strong offensive numbers in the second quarter, though WCU controlled the scoreboard, going 4-of-6 from deep with Pack connecting on both of her 3-point attempts in the quarter. Carter and Obasuyi played the entirety of the second quarter, combining for 15 of the team's 24 points in the quarter as WCU stretched its lead to 11 with 1:51 left before half. The Camels cut into the lead late and only trailed by seven when the half ended.
The Catamounts opened the third off on the right foot as Pack forced a turnover which allowed Obasuyi to stretch the lead to nine early in the quarter. Undeterred, the Camels chipped at the Catamount lead, eventually knotting the game at 49-all with 4:02 left before the fourth. Campbell took the lead for the first time since the 6:38 mark in the second quarter as Hadleigh Dill knocked down a free throw, sparking a late quarter surge as the Camels took a 4-point lead into the final 10 minutes.
Campbell's lead grew to eight before a WCU timeout with 3:30 left in the night. Carter stepped up out of the timeout, sinking back-to-back treys to cut the deficit down to two with 2:40 to go. A Jada Burton free throw pulled the Catamounts back to within one, while Obasuyi put WCU ahead once again with 2:02 left.
The two teams traded one-point leads until Gemma Nunez hit her second of two shots from the charity stripe to put the Camels up two with 17 seconds left. Carter nearly had the "and-one" with 13 seconds left but knocked down both free throws to tie it up at 71 all. Gianni Boone gave Campbell a 72-71 lead late on 1-of-2 free throws, but Pack put the Purple and Gold up one again after securing both of her free throw attempts. The visitors received the final shot attempt of the night with 10 seconds left as Jessica Woods attempted a mid-range jumper for the win. Freshman Taj Hunter flashed a hand in front of the sophomore, contesting the shot which clattered off the rim and rolled out of bounds as time expired.
Catamount Notables:
* AC Carter and Kehinde Obasuyi both posted 20+ points in the 73-72 win over the Camels. Thursday night's victory was the first game with two Catamounts scoring 20+ since a double OT loss to ETSU in 2022-23 (Kyla Allison – 23, Endia Holliday – 21). Both Catamounts point totals of 22 and 24 respectively were career highs;
* The win is the 12th victory by one possession in head coach Jonathan Tsipis' career. Eight of those have been decided by one point;
* The Catamounts are now 12-13 all-time with the Campbell Camels, defending the home court in the last two meetings in Cullowhee;
* WCU starts 2-0 for the first time since the 2022-23 season. The team's second win in the 2022-23 season was a 48-47 home victory over the Winthrop Eagles.
Up Next for the Catamounts:
Western Carolina hits the road for the remainder of November with six-straight road games to end the opening month of the season. The road trip begins with a visit to Virginia as the Catamounts face the Radford Highlanders Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m.
