OKLAHOMA CITY – The top four seeds all advanced in Sooner Athletic Conference tournament quarterfinals that were played on Friday and Saturday as Science & Arts, Southwestern Assemblies of God, Oklahoma City and Wayland Baptist were the four teams left standing by the end of the weekend.
The final four teams left in the SAC will now advance to play in the semifinals that will be held at the Gaulke Activity Center on the campus on the campus of Mid-America Christian University in Oklahoma City on Monday, Feb. 28. The top-seeded Drovers will take on the Pioneers in the 1 p.m. game while the Lions and Stars will face each other in the 3 p.m. contest.
Science & Arts 110, SW Christian 100
CHICKASHA, Okla. – Senior guard Cameron Hines led the way with 34 points as the high octane offense of top-seeded Science & Arts was able to hold off a tough contest made by the eighth-seeded Southwestern Christian in a 110-100 victory at the USAO Fieldhouse on Friday night.
Hines was electric from all over the court, shooting a blistering 10-for-19 from the field, 4-of-8 from the three-point arc and 10-for-11 from the foul line to go with five boards and four assists. Stephon Hall also provided a tough 1-2 punch with Hines in the Drovers backcourt, finishing with 20 points on 7-of-16 shooting and 6-for-6 from the charity stripe.
Luiz Machado Jr. led five Eagles players in double-figures in the defeat, pouring in 21 points on 6-of-13 from the floor, 4-for-8 from downtown and 5-of-6 on free throw attempts to go with six boards and four assists.
It looked as though SCU may play the role of spoiler in the first half, jumping out to a nine-point lead at 20-11 nearing the midway point. However, the Drovers stormed their way back over the next seven minutes as it was a back-and-forth battle until Hines gave the Drovers the lead at 33-32 with a three-ball with 5:26 left.
The Eagles managed to fight back and tie it at 41 on a Machado triple with just under a minute and a half left, but USAO scored the final four of the half to take a 45-41 edge into the half.
The Drovers pulled away in the second half, leading by double-figures most of the way before Southwestern Christian made one final push, closing it to a six-point game on another Machado three to set the score to 102-96 with 49 seconds left. However, Science & Arts was able to put the game away from the foul line, going 8-for-8 in the final minute to seal the 110-100 win.
SW Assemblies of God 90, Mid-America Christian 83
WAXAHACHIE, Texas – Second-seeded Southwestern Assemblies of God survived a scare by No. 7 seed Mid-America Christian as the Lions closed out the quarterfinal matchup with an 11-2 run over the final 2:30 to come away with a 90-83 victory inside the Sheaffer Center on Friday.
Senior guard Nathan Bailey led the Lions with a career-high 25 points on 8-of-17 shooting and going 4-for-8 from behind the arc and 5-of-6 from the line. Joshua Kashila was also big for the Lions, narrowly missing a triple-double with 20 points on 9-for-17 from the field, 12 rebounds and seven assists.
Kendall Scott led the Evangels with 22 points on 11-of-17 from the floor and six boards while Jasiah Lewis chipped in 20 points on 7-for-16 shooting, including 5-for-10 from three.
MACU was able to secure the early lead and stretch it to as much as eight on a Lewis three-pointer at the 9:55 mark to make it a 22-14 game. The Lions stormed back in the final five minutes of the first half, outscoring the Evangels 17-8 to grab a 44-41 lead heading into the break.
It looked as though SAGU was going to run away in the second half, outscoring the Evangels 23-12 through the first seven minutes to build a 67-53 advantage with 13:24 to go.
Mid-America Christian immediate stormed back with a 15-2 run of their own to close it to a one-point game before eventually taking the lead at 79-77 on a Lewis three with 4:04 remaining.
With exactly 2:30 left, Bailey put the Lions in-front for good with a three-ball and made a pair of clutch foul shots on the ensuing possession to boost the SAGU edge to 84-81. Southwestern Assemblies of God made several huge defensive stops while Noah Boling iced the game by going 4-for-4 from the charity stripe over the final 35 seconds.
Oklahoma City 85, Central Christian 56
OKLAHOMA CITY – The No. 3 seed Oklahoma City Stars spoiled the 11th-seeded Central Christian's Cinderella tournament run with a dominant run inside Abe Lemons Arena, coming away with an 85-56 victory on Saturday night.
Rashaun Coleman led five OCU players in double-figures with 22 points on a blazing 6-of-10 shooting performance, including going 3-for-6 from three and 7-of-8 from the free throw line.
Demario Moore was the lone Tiger to find himself in double-digits, finishing with 21 points on 5-of-9 from behind the arc to go with 6-for-6 from the charity stripe.
The Tigers looked to play the role of spoiler in the early on-set, leading by as much as six through the first 10 minutes before a Ryan Birt three gave the Stars a 16-15 edge with 9:52 left in the half.
CCC's Ronald Jamierson buried a triple on the ensuing possession to put the Tigers back on-top, but the Stars closed out the with an enormous surge, outscoring Central Christian 22-10 over the final nine minutes to take a 40-28 lead into the half.
The momentum carried over into the second half for OCU as the Stars opened the half with an eight-unanswered run capped off on a Birt old fashioned three-point play to set the score to 48-28 with 18:33 to go.
The Stars continued to pull away over the course of the second half, leading by as much as 33 on an Ellie Ghomsie tip-in at the 5:44 mark to make it an 81-48 OCU advantage.
Wayland Baptist 74, John Brown 61
PLAINVIEW, Texas – Fourth-seeded Wayland Baptist was able to take care of business inside the Hutcherson Center as the top-rated defense in the league was able to force 17 Golden Eagles' turnovers to come away with a 74-61 victory on Saturday afternoon.
RJ Mason led the Pioneers on the offensive end with 21 points after going 8-for-14 from the field and 3-of-5 from three to go with six boards while Jaxon Recer just missed a double-double with 17 points on 7-of-10 shooting to go with a team-high eight boards.
Luke Harper led the John Brown efforts with 24 points on 10-for-15 from the floor, but the Pioneers defense was also able to frustrate the senior guard into committing six turnovers on the night.
WBU was able to seize control in the early onset, building a 19-9 lead through the first eight minutes on a Mason three-ball with 12:18 remaining.
John Brown was eventually able to close it to a four-point game on a pair of Payton Guiot foul shots with 52 seconds left, but a Recer bucket on WBU's final possession of the half sent the Pioneers into the half with a 34-28 cushion.
Wayland Baptist was once again able to utilize a strong start to the half, outscoring the Golden Eagles 8-4 through the first four minutes to build back a double-digit lead at 42-32.
After a Harper lay-in with 9:35 left brought it to within five at 53-48, the Pioneers pulled away with a 10-2 run over the next four minutes as Wayland Baptist held serve the rest of the way.
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SOONER ATHLETIC CONFERENCE MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT
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TUESDAY, FEB. 22
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First Round at Campus Sites
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Game 1
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No. 5 John Brown 89, No. 12 Langston 73
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Game 2
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No. 11 Central Christian 69, No. 6 Texas Wesleyan 64
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Game 3
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No. 7 Mid-America Christian 83, No. 10 North Texas Dallas 72
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Game 4
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No. 8 SW Christian 103, No. 9 Panhandle State 94
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FRIDAY, FEB. 25 / SATURDAY, FEB. 26
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Quarterfinals at Campus Sites
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Game 5
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No. 1 Science & Arts 110, No. 8 SW Christian 100
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Game 6
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No. 2 SW Assemblies of God 90, No. 7 Mid-America Christian 83
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Game 7
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No. 3 Oklahoma City 85, No. 11 Central Christian 56
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Game 8
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No. 4 Wayland Baptist 74, No. 5 John Brown 61
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MONDAY, FEB. 28
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Semifinals at Gaulke Activity Center in Oklahoma City
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Game 9
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No. 1 Science & Arts (25-5) vs. No. 4 Wayland Baptist (18-12)
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1 p.m.
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Game 10
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No. 2 SW Assemblies of God (20-8) vs. No. 3 Oklahoma City (17-13)
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3 p.m.
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TUESDAY, MARCH 1
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Championship at Gaulke Activity Center in Oklahoma City
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Game 11
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Semifinal Winners
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5:30 p.m.
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