Box Score OKLAHOMA CITY (Jan. 8, 2015) – With two starters – including their leading scorer – on the bench down the stretch, having fouled out, the Oklahoma Christian Eagles clawed and scratched and reached overtime, and looked like they'd forced a second OT.
But there was just enough time for Oklahoma Panhandle State's Marquavius Williams, whose layup in traffic with four-tenths of a second left gave the Aggies a 74-72 win on Thursday night at the Eagles' Nest.
Williams' only basket of the game came after
Jordan Box had scored on a driving layup for OC (2-9, 0-5 Heartland Conference) with 6.2 seconds left to tie the game at 72-72. Panhandle State (3-9, 1-3) rushed the ball downcourt and the Eagles weren't able to account for Williams.
It was the second straight overtime loss for OC, which fell at Texas A&M International on Saturday in similar fashion, and the fourth loss in as many games decided by one possession or in overtime.
"Our kids, it's hard to get back up," OC coach
Dan Hays said. "You lose an overtime game in Laredo (Texas) last Saturday afternoon, come back home and have three great days of practice, and I wouldn't say we played great, but it seemed like every loose ball bounced to one of them. Every tie-up, they either get a timeout or it's their possession.
"Then you've got some of your best players fouled out. Back in the day, your best players got the call, especially at home. … But that's something we've got to live with. It's just very discouraging. I still like the team and it's going to be a tough task coming in here Saturday and playing Lubbock Christian."
Hays shortened his bench considerably in the second half, with six players seeing the bulk of the action until the final minutes. One of them, senior guard
Casey Covalt, played a career-high 26 minutes.
But 7-foot center
John Moon fouled out with 2:04 left in regulation, taking away a major defensive presence for the Eagles, and
Jordan Rutherford – who seemed to be on pace for a career outing before being derailed by foul trouble – fouled out with 18.9 seconds left in regulation.
Still, OC was able to force overtime when
Eric Randall put back his own miss and tied the game at 65-65 with 1.4 seconds left.
The Eagles took a quick lead in overtime, with Randall scoring off a feed from Covalt, but John Lazenby's three-point play returned the advantage to Panhandle State. Lazenby led all scorers with 23 points.
OC never got the lead back, as after Randall's basket, the Eagles couldn't score another one until Box's layup in the final seconds. Even so, that looked to be enough before Williams' heroics.
"We can't give up," Hays said. "We've got to keep working. We can either let this be a long season or we can get some positive out of it. We choose to go positive."
Four Eagles scored in double figures. Box had a career-high 15 points. Randall had 15 points and nine rebounds, while Moon had 15 points, seven rebounds and three blocked shots – twice stepping through double- and triple-teams to throw down thunderous dunks. Rutherford finished with 12 points.
Panhandle State finished 12-of-35 from 3-point range (34.3 percent), the Aggies' second-highest totals of the season in both makes and attempts from behind the arc. They built a 10-point first half lead thanks in good part to hitting eight 3-pointers in the first 15½ minutes. OC pulled within 37-32 by halftime.
The lead changed hands six times in the final 3:03 of regulation. Covalt scored on a layup – after a spectacular steal-and-save by Rutherford – with 1:21 left to put OC up 63-62. Austin Beene answered with a put-back for the Aggies, then Lazenby hit 1-of-2 free throws with 18.9 seconds left, setting the stage for Randall's tying basket.
Jared Straight added 17 points and five assists and Antonio Manns Jr. scored 15 for the Aggies, who posted their first win over the Eagles since the 1993-94 season.
OC will return to action on Saturday afternoon, hosting Lubbock Christian (Texas) at 3 p.m.
