BUIES CREEK, N.C. – Defense travels.
 
Longwood held Campbell without a made shot for 11 minutes to start the game, and the Lancers (10-5, 2-0 Big South) crushed the Camels 67-42 to stay unbeaten in Big South play. The 42 points were the fewest allowed by Longwood this season and the fewest since an 82-42 win over American last season.
 
The suffocating defense paved the way for the 10^th win of the season for Longwood. The team had never gone 10-5 to start the season at the Division I level prior to Griff Aldrich's tenure with the team, and now they've done it three times in five seasons.
 
"This was a great effort by our guys," Aldrich said. "They played really well, particularly on the defensive end. This is one of the hardest preps, and I thought the guys did a phenomenal job in being able to execute in a short time."

"We have experience, and that pays off. The thing that we've been fighting for is urgency. Focus, effort, attitude, those are all the key ingredients. We talk about pouring into the root. If you pour in focus, effort and attitude, that gives you the best chance to execute. I thought we had some real commitment and purpose to be able to do that."

No player for Campbell (5-9, 0-2 Big South) hit double figures, and the Lancer defense held Campbell to .277 (13-47) shooting for the game. In addition, Longwood forced 21 turnovers and grabbed a season-best 13 steals.
 
Meanwhile, three players scored in double figures on offense for the Lancers. Michael Christmas had 11 points and five boards on his birthday, and Isaiah Wilkins and Walyn Napper each chipped in 11 as well.
 
"Michael is a terrific player," Aldrich said. "He's still learning our system. A lot of people think, well, he was injured, but he didn't play for about nine months, and it had been almost two years since he had played in a competitive game with proper uniforms on. He is now, in my opinion, is just starting to be the player we think he can be. Of course, he has really stepped in [as a five] in Leslie's absence. He's done a phenomenal job, and he gave us some really big buckets.

"Some of his offensive rebounds and stickbacks were such killers. You play defense for 20 seconds, and hopefully Longwood has made you have to work to stop us, and then you get us to miss, and boom. Michael catches it and lays it in. I expect Michael will get better and better, and I think Lancer fans are going to be excited about what the birthday boy is going to do for the program for the coming years."

In the first half, the Lancer defense was impenetrable. Three times the team held Campbell without a point for a three minute stretch or longer, and Campbell didn't hit its first shot of the game until 11 minutes in.
 
Jaylen Williams capped a 10-0 run with a three to start the game for Longwood, and the Lancers extended the lead to 23-3 with nine minutes to go in the half.
 
The Camels only hit five shots in the half, and Longwood forced 10 turnovers while grabbing seven steals.
 
Christmas was a force on the interior, and he scored nine of his 11 points in the opening 20 minutes. Seven players scored a point for Longwood in the half.
 
After halftime, the Camels went on a 9-3 run to close the gap to 12, but DeShaun Wade hit a foul shot, and the defense resumed being the apex predator. Nate Lliteras drained a corner three off a turnover by Campbell, and the Lancers kept Campbell at arm's length for the remainder of the game.

"The next step is to enjoy today," Aldrich said. "We're 10-5. This is a special thing. What I told the guys is, this was a very good win on the road, which is a big deal and very hard to do, and we can be better. That's not a negative. It should be exciting to them that there's more room for improvement, more room for  growth, some lessons for individuals to learn from this game, and I'm excited to see where this team goes during the course of the next few weeks. Today's goal is to enjoy this and reflect that the Longwood Lancers are 10-5. That is a monumental thing, especially for fans who've followed Longwood basketball over the years.  I'm really proud of these guys and what they've done, especially the ones who have been in the program. They're the ones who built this. I'm really excited for them and want them to enjoy that."
 
Longwood heads to Charleston Southern on Wednesday, Jan. 4 for its seventh road game in nine games. Tip is set for 7 p.m. The game will air on ESPN+ and on the radio on WVHL 92.9 Kickin' Country.
 
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