Box Score OKLAHOMA CITY (Jan. 31, 2015) – Even a career-best outing by Oklahoma Christian's leading scorer wasn't enough to offset the sizzling shooting of Texas A&M International on Saturday afternoon.
OC sophomore center
John Moon poured in 24 points, but the Dustdevils shot 60.7 percent from the field and 50 percent from 3-point range en route to an 81-60 win in the Eagles' Nest.
OC (3-15, 1-11 Heartland Conference) took TAMIU (10-10, 5-7) to overtime in a six-point loss Laredo, Texas, on Jan. 3, but the Dustdevils hit just four 3-pointers in that game. They had five 3-pointers in the first five minutes on Saturday while jumping to a double-digit lead and OC was in an uphill battle the rest of the way.
"We just ran into a hot team today," OC coach
Dan Hays said. "We had no answer for their shooting."
The Eagles led 9-6 after a lay-in by
Eric Randall a little more than two minutes into the game, but Terrell Funches had two 3-pointers and Montrice McKnight added another during a 15-0 run by the Dustdevils that put them ahead 21-9. OC never led again.
OC cut the gap to six points midway through the first half, but another push by TAMIU gave the Dustdevils a 45-32 halftime lead. The closest the Eagles came in the second half was at 53-41, when
Cameron Peters hit 1-of-2 free throws with 15:59 left.
TAMIU finished 34-of-56 from the field and 10-of-20 from 3-point range. OC was shooting close to 50 percent until the game's final stages and eventually finished at 40.9 percent (18 of 44).
Moon, as he has been all basketball season, was a dominant force, going 6-of-10 from the field and 12-of-15 from the free-throw line. He also grabbed seven rebounds and extended his streak of games with at least one blocked shot to 17. But the only other OC player to reach double figures was
Jordan Rutherford, with 11 points.
"It's tough, but he's really, really learning," Hays said of Moon. "Hopefully next year we'll be better shooters. We've got a couple of kids coming in who can really shoot the ball … and we've got guys who aren't making shots who can. With a year under their belt, they're going to be a lot better."
Funches had entered the game 5-of-30 from 3-point range this season but went 4-of-5 from behind the arc to lead TAMIU with 20 points. McKnight added 12 points, while Vadal Faniel (11), Curtis Trotter (10) and Jamie Farrie (10) also reached double figures for the Dustdevils.
OC will visit Lubbock Christian (Texas) on Thursday. LCU is in a five-way tie for first in a wild Heartland race and will be seeking revenge for a 20-point loss to the Eagles earlier this month. After that will be a trip to Oklahoma Panhandle State next Saturday.
"We're fighting," Hays said. "We're trying. It's just hard. I don't know why we didn't make these shots in the second half. … We've got a tough road trip next week. We've got eight games left. We'll see what kind of character we have."
