Eric Randall scored nine of his 14 points in extra time to help OC beat Mid-America Christian 90-86 in double overtime on Saturday.
OKLAHOMA CITY (Jan. 28, 2012) – Will Reinke scored a career-high 30 points and Eric Randall scored nine of his 14 points in extra time as Oklahoma Christian beat Mid-America Christian 90-86 in double overtime on Saturday on Dan Hays Court in the Eagles' Nest.
There was no shortage of heroes for OC (14-7, 8-6 Sooner Athletic Conference) as the Eagles won their second overtime game in three days, having prevailed at Oklahoma City University in one extra period on Thursday.
But the biggest play for OC on Saturday – "the play of the game," coach Dan Hays said – came near the end of the first overtime, courtesy of point guard Kendre Talley.
After the Eagles – trailing 74-72 – missed a long 3-point attempt with less than 15 seconds left, MACU's Cameron Langster steamed down the court as the Evangels appeared headed for a game-clinching fast-break bucket. Talley stepped in front of Langster just past half-court and drew a charging foul, giving the Eagles the ball back with 10.8 seconds left.
Moments later, Talley lobbed the ball to Reinke, who caught the pass off the backboard and laid the ball into the basket to tie the game with :02 left and force a second overtime. It was OC's first multiple-overtime game since winning a four-overtime game 102-100 at Northwestern Oklahoma State on Nov. 23, 2009.
"It seems like we played two games," Hays said. "It was a great job of perseverance. Let's give Mid-America and coach Willie Holley a lot of credit. That's a scrappy team, a hard team to prepare for on a one-day turnaround. They've had some big wins in the last three games. We're fortunate to come out on top.
"It feels good to sweep on the week. It took three overtimes to do it, but maybe we're growing and hopefully this will lead to something better."
A three-point play by Reinke and a 3-pointer by Brandon Troutman – his fourth of the game – gave OC an 82-76 lead with 2:50 left in the second OT. The Eagles went 8-of-10 from the free-throw line in the final 1:03, which proved just enough to offset three 3-pointers by MACU in the final 55.9 seconds.
MACU (9-10, 4-10) had five players foul out, while OC lost no one to fouls. The Evangels were whistled for 31 fouls, compared to 19 for OC, and the Eagles' 31-of-39 free-throw shooting proved to be the difference. MACU went 12-of-19 from the line.
"We won the game 10 times and they won it, then they lost it," Hays said.
Reinke dominated throughout, finishing 11-of-20 from the field and adding 13 rebounds, five assists and two steals to go with his 30 points. His previous career high of 29 points came against MACU on Feb. 3, 2011. In two games this season against MACU, the 6-foot-10 junior averaged 28 points, 14.5 rebounds, 7 assists and 3.5 blocked shots per game.
Randall added 14 points and four assists – going 7-of-8 from the line in the two overtimes – while Troutman had 16 points and Talley contributed nine points, seven rebounds and five assists.
The Eagles led 28-26 at halftime but trailed 45-38 after a three-point play by MACU's Langster with 13:13 left. OC went on a 12-2 run to go up 50-47 but Charlie Shorter had seven points in a 13-5 MACU run that put the Evangels ahead 60-55 with 2:10 left in regulation.
OC reeled off eight straight points and went up 63-60 after two free throws by Randall with 18.8 seconds left, but Shorter hit an NBA-range 3-pointer with 12.7 seconds left to force the first overtime.
Shorter – the SAC's leading scorer – led the Evangels with 26 points, while Brandon Williams scored 20 and Camilo Valencia added 12.
OC's next game will be Thursday night, when the Eagles host Wayland Baptist (Texas).
