Box Score OKLAHOMA CITY (Feb. 27, 2016) – The hoped-for Hollywood ending didn't materialize for Oklahoma Christian and coach Dan Hays on Saturday afternoon against Texas-Permian Basin.

OC was in the game all the way and led briefly in the second half, but UTPB was sizzling from 3-point range, going 15-of-29 and holding off the Eagles 89-81 before an Eagles' Nest packed with more than 2,000 fans to watch Hays' last game as OC's men's basketball coach after a remarkable 33-season run.

Alumni traveled from as far away as South Carolina, Georgia, Michigan, Arizona and New Mexico to pay homage to the man who coached them, served as their mentor and set an example as to how to win big while doing it right. The state House of Representatives honored Hays by designating Saturday as "Dan Hays Day" in Oklahoma, a resolution co-sponsored by OC alum and state Rep. Mike Sanders of Kingfisher.

After the game, the university honored Hays with a brief postgame ceremony, and all of his former players and coaches gathered on Dan Hays Court for one of the greatest team photos ever taken – one more than three decades in the making. The love in the arena was palpable as players from different generations of OC hoops mixed and mingled, sharing their affection for their coach.

"My goodness," Hays said. "I'm still overwhelmed – a packed Eagles' Nest, overflow crowd, players from three decades, taking me back to my first team. It was an unbelievable experience. I almost can't put words to it."

Hays finished his coaching career with a 724-470 record, which includes five seasons at Northwestern Oklahoma State before taking over the reins at OC in 1983. He ranks 20th among active men's coaches in wins and tied for 42nd overall. He has won more games at an Oklahoma university than any other coach.

"We had so many great ballplayers and great memories walking through that gym," Hays said. "It was fantastic. Fantastic. I'm so appreciative for the people who put this thing together. I knew they were working on things, but I would have never imagined the crowd that we had today.

"It's been a good run and I'll always be an Eagle."

OC (7-21, 4-16 Heartland Conference), coming off a rousing win Thursday over St. Edward's (Texas), played well but couldn't quite duplicate that effort. The Eagles shot a respectable 48.3 percent (28 of 58) from the field, but UTPB (15-13, 10-10) shot 50.8 percent (30 of 59) and buried the Eagles under a 3-point barrage after halftime, knocking down 11 shots from behind the arc in the second half.

Junior center John Moon led the Eagles with 28 points, seven rebounds and two blocked shots. The two blocks gave him 164 during his three seasons at OC, moving him into sole possession of the Heartland's career record in that category. He's on pace to break OC's career blocks record of 229, set by Micah Miles from 2004-07, and has recorded at least one block in 53 straight games.

His 669 points this season rank as the second-highest single-season total in Heartland history and No. 11 on the OC single-season list. Moon ended the campaign with 1,423 career points, passing Jeff Crocker (1,406 from 2007-11) to move into 23rd place on the Eagles' all-time scoring list.

He ended the season averaging 23.9 points, 9.1 rebounds and 2.5 blocked shots per game (70 total). He'll be only the second player in Heartland history to finish atop the league in three major stat categories, joining former teammate Kendre Talley, who led in scoring, assists and steals two seasons ago.

His season scoring average is the second-highest in Heartland history and he's already seventh on the league's career scoring list, just 581 points behind Kevin Kotzur of St. Mary's (Texas), who scored 2,004 points from 2009-13. Moon's 257 field goals this season set a new Heartland record, breaking by 18 the mark established by Kotzur during his conference player-of-the-year season in 2012-13.

Three other Eagles also scored in double figures. Freshman guard Daniel Eibel went 4-of-6 from 3-point range and had 16 points, while Elijah Strickland added 15 points and Jordan Rutherford scored 14 points.

OC led 51-50 after a 3-pointer by Eibel with 14:58 left, but a 16-2 run by the Falcons – capped by a 3-pointer by Sam Stirgus – gave them a 66-53 lead with 12:15 left.

The Eagles came no closer than five points the rest of the way, doing so on four occasions, the last with 58.3 seconds left after Eibel hit 1-of-2 free throws. But Johnnie Lacy, who led UTPB with 28 points, nailed the last of his six 3-pointers (in nine attempts) with 27.7 seconds left to seal the verdict.

Josh Williams added 14 points for the Falcons, while Stirgus had 12.

"I've never been in this situation," Hays said. "I've never come to a Monday at work and not had a team for next year. This is going to be unusual, but the next step is something I'm looking forward to, whatever it is. I'm not sure.

"The cupboard is not bare. Whatever happens, this has a chance to get things turned around quick."

Dan Hays on the game: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mouuiwT-SQs&feature=youtu.be

Dan Hays' final postgame speech to the Eagles: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQ2HjYBX7cg&feature=youtu.be

Postgame ceremony honoring Dan Hays: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bu0DtaFOSxs&feature=youtu.be

Montage of Dan Hays' final weekend as OC coach: https://vimeo.com/160764583