Kukobat's FTs push Eastern Illinois past Gardner-Webb 79-78
ASHEVILLE, N.C. -- Rade Kukobat made a pair of free throws with three seconds left to push Eastern Illinois past Gardner-Webb 79-78 on Friday.
Gardner-Webb trailed 77-74 with 52 seconds left when Christian Turner made a pair of free throws to pull the Bulldogs to 77-76. Turner then forced a turnover, and following Bulldogs' timeout, Gardner-Webb took a 78-77 lead on David Efianayi's jumper with eight seconds to go. But Nate Johnson fouled Kukobat following timeouts from both teams.
Josiah Wallace made four 3-pointers and scored 22 points to lead Eastern Illinois (2-2). Mack Smith added 13 points, Kukobat finished with 12 and Kashawn Charles chipped in with 11.
Efianayi was 6 of 10 from the floor and made seven free throws to lead Gardner-Webb (1-4) with 20 points. Johnson added 10 points for the Bulldogs.
The Panthers opened the second half on a 16-6 run and led 51-44, but Gardner-Webb tied it at 53 then neither team led by more than four points.
Game Information
- Referees:
- Andrew Barksdale
- Jeff Pon
- Kyle Regetz
2024-25 Ohio Valley Conference Standings
| Team | CONF | GB | OVR |
|---|---|---|---|
| Morehead State | 2-0 | - | 6-6 |
| Southeast Missouri State | 2-0 | - | 6-6 |
| Little Rock | 1-0 | 0.5 | 7-5 |
| Western Illinois | 1-1 | 1 | 7-6 |
| Southern Indiana | 1-1 | 1 | 6-6 |
| Lindenwood | 1-1 | 1 | 6-7 |
| Tennessee Tech | 1-1 | 1 | 5-7 |
| UT Martin | 1-1 | 1 | 5-8 |
| Eastern Illinois | 0-1 | 1.5 | 3-8 |
| SIU Edwardsville | 0-2 | 2 | 7-6 |
| Tennessee State | 0-2 | 2 | 4-9 |
2024-25 Big South Conference Standings
| Team | CONF | GB | OVR |
|---|---|---|---|
| High Point | 0-0 | - | 12-2 |
| Longwood | 0-0 | - | 11-3 |
| Winthrop | 0-0 | - | 10-4 |
| Radford | 0-0 | - | 10-5 |
| UNC Asheville | 0-0 | - | 8-5 |
| Presbyterian | 0-0 | - | 7-7 |
| Gardner-Webb | 0-0 | - | 5-8 |
| South Carolina Upstate | 0-0 | - | 4-11 |
| Charleston Southern | 0-0 | - | 3-11 |
Men's College Basketball News
