BOX SCORE
BARTLESVILLE, Okla. – Southwestern Oklahoma State’s Rod Camphor came off the bench and matched the GAC all-time, single-game scoring record as he led the Bulldogs to a 77-69 victory against third-seeded Arkansas-Monticello in the opening quarterfinal contest of the 2013 Great American Conference Men’s Basketball Championships from Bruin Fieldhouse.
Camphor scored 36 points to best his own personal record of 22 points. He topped the GAC Championship record of 28 points set by his teammate, Dominick Cornelius, against Henderson State on March 1, 2012 and he tied UAM’s Kori Forge’s all-time single-game GAC record. Camphor hit 12-of-14 from the floor and 3-of-4 from the 3-point arc. He scored nine points in overtime as the Bulldogs connected on 10-of-13 from the free-throw line during the extra session.
Southwestern Oklahoma State-Arkansas-Monticello Photo Gallery
In addition to Camphor, the Bulldogs received double-figure scoring from Michael Bradley and Ryan Donahoe. Bradley notched a double-double by grabbing 10 rebounds. Donahoe grabbed seven rebounds and dished out a game-high five assists.
The Bulldogs (12-15) pulled off their third victory as a lower seed over the past two GAC Championships. Last season, as the No. 7 seed, they beat No. 2 Henderson State and No. 3 Arkansas-Monticello in advancing to the title game. No other school has won as the lower seed in the brief history of the GAC Men’s Basketball Championship.
Forge, the 2012-13 GAC Player of the Year closed out his career at Arkansas-Monticello (16-11) with 16 points and nine rebounds. He played all 45 minutes of the game. Brandon Sims added 15 points and a game-high 17 rebounds as the Boll Weevils out-rebounded the Bulldogs by a 48-35 margin.
The Bulldogs advanced to Saturday’s semifinals where they will face the winner of the Arkansas Tech and Henderson State game at 6 p.m. The Bulldogs and Wonder Boys met in last year’s final with Arkansas Tech claiming the title. Arkansas Tech won both regular-season meetings this year. SWOSU and Henderson State split during the regular season with each winning on the opposing school’s home floor.