Box Score Campbellsville watched its once 12-point lead slip away Saturday, as the West Virginia University Tech Bears pulled away with an 83-74 road win at Powell Athletic Center. It was the second straight MSC upset in a road trip to Kentucky this week for the Bears, which knocked off No. 20 St. Catharine College on Thursday.

“It was a very, very lackluster effort by our guys. I think fatigue has definitely set in, and if we want to use that excuse, then let them use it. The bottom line, though, is West Virginia Tech had a much tougher 48 hours than we did, having to be on the road from West Virginia and to play an overtime game against St. Catharine on Thursday. They were mentally and physically tougher, and to use a cliché, they wanted it more than we did,” CU head coach Keith Adkins said. “In my humble opinion, the fatigue factor does not float. It means nothing to me.”

Tech took an early 13-5 run, but the Tigers went on a 30-10 run to gain a 35-23 lead. CU gained its lead on a seven-point swing around the 10-minute mark. Adrian Whelan converted a four-point play, and then assisted a 3 by Shawn Savage to give the Tigers a 23-21 lead. The Bears cut the margin to 35-28 at the half, as CU was scoreless from the floor in the final five minutes of the half.

WVU Tech continued its momentum into the early part of the second half to pull within three, 35-32, before Caleb Harris ended the Tigers’ shooting drought three minutes into the second half. CU maintained its lead, working it back up to nine, 51-42, but the game quickly flipped. In less than a minute, Tech scored 10 unanswered points to take its first lead of the half, 52-51. Two minutes later, Tech was able to take the lead for good with a basket by Josh Arnold, who led all players with 23 points. The Bears led by as many as 13 with 28 seconds left.

Campbellsville attempted to cut the margin by putting the Bears on the free throw line, but the Tech shooters were 15-of-18 from the charity stripe in the final two minutes. The Tigers’ shooting woes were all-game long. While CU had 14 3-pointers, it missed 33, and only connected on six two-point tries.

Six of the Tigers’ 3-pointers came from Savage, who led CU with 20 points. Caleb Harris followed with 17, while JaVaughn Espritt and Reggie Smith each had 12. Espritt led all players with 16 rebounds.

Tech moves to .500 on the season (11-11) with the win and 6-6 in the Mid-South Conference.

Campbellsville (14-10, 7-6 MSC) will travel to Pikeville College for its next MSC game Thursday at 8 p.m. at the Eastern Kentucky Expo Center. Pikeville sits in third-place in the MSC at 20-5 overall, 9-4 in the conference after an upset of Georgetown College on Thursday and a 109-55 win over Shawnee State Saturday.

“This time of year teams go in one of two directions. They either go straight up, and that’s what Pikeville appears to be doing, or they go in the other direction, and we need to put the skids on real quick, or that will be us,” Adkins said.

STAT SUMMARY
West Virginia Tech (83) â€" Arnold 23, Robinson 21, Tabb 12, Kjaerholt 10, Morgan 9, Proctor 8. Totals 27-66 25-29 83.
Tigers (74) â€" Savage 20, Harris 17, Smith 12, Espritt 12, Whelan 9, Bohm 4. Totals 20-65 14-47 74.
Half-time - Campbellsville 35-28.
Three-point goals - WVT 4-16 (Arnold 2, Robinson 2), Campbellsville 14-47 (Savage 6, Smith 4, Harris 2, Whelan 2).
Rebounds - WVT 54 (Proctor 13), Campbellsville 35 (Espritt 16, Crittenden 6, Smith 5, Bohm 3, Harris 2, Savage 2).
Assists - WVT 15 (Proctor 4), Campbellsville 12 (Whelan 3, Savage 3, Smith 2, Crittenden 2, Harris 1, Bohm 1).
Steals - WVT 6 (Proctor 3), Campbellsville 3 (Harris 2, Whelan 1)