LEBANON, Tenn. – Campbellsville University picked up its first Mid-South Conference win today as CU (6-6, 1-3 MSC) beat No. 23 Cumberland University (10-3, 2-2 MSC), on a last-second layup by Eric Gaines giving the Tigers a 69-68 win.

With two minutes remaining in the game, Cumberland took its first lead on a Marquel Hickerson 3-point basket that rattled around the rim a few times and finally went down. It was the first time the Bulldogs had led since the 12-second mark of the first half.

But the Tigers did not let that phase them as Darius Clement was fouled as he drove to the basket. He hit his two free throws and then came back down and hit a floater in the lane to give CU the lead 68-67.

Cumberland came back down the floor and off a miss by Hickerson, Josh Wilkerson ran down the rebound and called a timeout. This was a perfect time for Coach Keith Adkins to set his defense and also give his players some instruction for the ensuing offensive possession.


"We changed the way we were playing on the defensive end and went under the screens and they made us pay," said Adkins. "Coming out of the timeout, we changed back and wanted to make them beat us off the dribble. They got to the line and hit two free throws but we came down and made a play at the end."

After the timeout, Cumberland came back down the floor and Lamar Brinkley went up for the rebound off a miss and was fouled by Elliott Young. Brinkley went to the line and hit two free-throws to give the Bulldogs the lead, 68-67.

Darius Clement rushed the ball back up the court and used a sweet pass to Eric Gaines driving to the basket. His up-and-under layup went down with 5.2 seconds on the clock. Cumberland University's desperation shot at the end came up short giving CU its first MSC win.
 

"We were looking for something positive to come out of the day," said Adkins. "This was a huge game for a team that is playing a depleted roster and we had guys make plays all day long."

Clement got the Tigers started as he scored the first seven points on 3-for-3 shooting inside the arch and 1-for-1 from 3-point range. But the junior guard did not get off a shot as Jordan Myers led the Tigers for the rest of the half.
 

Campbellsville came out of a first-half timeout, after a 4-0 Cumberland run, and Quin Richardson hit a big 3-pointer to tie the game at 22 apiece. The next trip down the court, Kadeem Thornton picked up a Richardson miss and his putback uncorked the tie, 24-22 Campbellsville leads with 8:25 remaining in the first half.

But Cumberland would not go away as Marquel Hickerson came down and hit a 3-point basket to give the Bulldogs the lead back. He went 3-for-4 from behind the arch and 4-for-6 total as he led Cumberland with 11 points in the first half.

Campbellsville came back, though, after Hickerson's three and Elliott Young started to bang bodies inside the post. The freshman from Mt. Washington, Ky. scored nine points for the Tigers on 6-for-6 from the free throw line. He also hit one three-pointer in the first 20 minutes of play.

Down the stretch in the first half, both teams traded three-point leads but Campbellsville held on to it to end the half. Eric Gaines hit two free throws to tie the game at 37 with 52 seconds left but after a bucket by Moritz Dern, Myers hit his second 3-pointer and gave Campbellsville the lead, 40-39.

Cumberland came back down and missed a 3-point basket but Gaines received a pass from Myers and his floater to end the half gave Campbellsville a 42-39 lead.


Myers started where he left off on Thursday night against Lindsey Wilson. The Evansville, Ind. native was 2-for-3 from the 3-point line in the first half and was the only Tiger in double figures at the break.

Campbellsville came out of the break and started where it left off. But CU picked up its defensive pressure as Thornton and Gaines both picked up steals. The Tigers went on a 9-4 run as Myers hit his fourth 3-point basket to extend the lead, 51-43.


But the Tigers went cold from the field for three-plus minutes and the Bulldogs pulled within one, 51-50.


Campbellsville ended the cold streak as Miles Rice hit two free throws followed by a 2-point jumper by Gaines and another free throw by Elliot Young; which tied his career high with 10 points.


The two teams traded blows back and fourth for the rest of the game as neither would give in to the other.

The one stat that stuck out was Cumberland outscored Campbellsville 32-14 in the paint. The Bulldogs went cold from the 3-point line as they only hit one in the final 20 minutes.


The reasoning for the big differential in points in the paint came down to Campbellsville extending further out on the 3-point line and forced the smaller lineup of Cumberland to make plays off the dribble.

Myers and Clement had 13 points for CU and Clement added nine assists. Myers (13), Gaines (10) and Young (10) all reached double figures. Thornton led the Tigers in rebounding with seven.

Campbellsville will be back in action on Thursday, Jan. 9 against No. 2 Georgetown College (11-2, 2-0 MSC). Game time is set for approximately 8 p.m. ET in Powell Athletic Center on the campus of Campbellsville University.
 

To follow CU Tiger Basketball throughout the rest of the season, check them out on Twitter - @CvilleTigers and Facebook – Campbellsville Tigers.