OKLAHOMA CITY (March 2, 2019) – Rogers State did what not many teams have done this basketball season – outrebound Oklahoma Christian – and the Hillcats left the Eagles' Nest as winners on Saturday afternoon as a result.

A key offensive rebound led to a tiebreaking 3-pointer by Saint Hilaire with 18.4 seconds left and OC never recovered while falling 64-60 on Senior Day for the Eagles.

The Eagles already had secured the No. 6 seed for the Heartland Conference tournament before the game. OC (10-17, 5-11 Heartland) will face third-seeded Lubbock Christian (Texas) on Friday at 7:30 p.m. in Tulsa.

Rogers State (19-11, 8-8) posted a 42-29 edge in rebounding against the Eagles, with 13 of those coming on the offensive end. OC entered the game leading the Heartland in rebounding, but outside of senior forward Roderick Smith, who had eight boards to go with 19 points, no other OC player had more than four rebounds.

"That's the tale of the tape," OC coach Cory Cole said. "I thought Rogers did a good job getting second- and third-shot opportunities. It came down the last two minutes, when they got a big offensive board that last possession which led to the game-changing three.

"They were just quicker tonight. I thought their guys really reacted well on the offensive glass. That's been a strength of ours and today it just wasn't."

The Eagles trailed 13-10 about five minutes into the game, but took advantage of a stretch during which Rogers State hit just one of 15 field-goal attempts, going on a 17-2 run. A 3-pointer by Aubrey Johnson put OC ahead 27-15 with 5:17 left in the first half and the Eagles were up 35-28 at halftime.

Consecutive 3-pointers by Brewster Peacock – who led the Hillcats with 19 points and nine rebounds – gave Rogers State a 38-37 advantage, and the teams spend the next few minutes exchanging the lead. Rogers State eased ahead 55-50 on two free throws by Chase Littlejohn with 5:47 left, but baskets by Will Lienhard and Smith – the latter a 3-pointer with 2:42 left – tied the game.

"That's Rod being Rod," Cole said. "His energy and toughness were important today. Rogers is one of the most physical teams in the Heartland and he did a good job of just picking his spots, being aggressive and keeping us in the game. He came up with some timely plays."

Two free throws by Brian Carey with 1:35 left tied the game again at 57-57 and the teams traded empty possessions before Tate Turner missed a 17-foot jumper for Rogers State. Peacock grabbed the rebound and the ball found its way to Hilaire for the game-turning 3-pointer.

Smith appeared to have hit a 3-pointer with 7.2 seconds left, but officials ruled there had been a foul on the floor before the shot. Carey made both free throws and the Eagles immediately fouled Turner, who made two free throws with 6.0 seconds left to extend the Hillcats' lead to 62-59.

Rogers State fouled Carey with 3.5 seconds left, before the Eagles could attempt a 3-pointer. Carey made the first free throw and deliberately missed the second, in hopes of an offensive rebound, but the carom instead went to Peacock, who made two free throws with 1.1 seconds left.

Senior guard Jordan Box scored 13 points for OC, while Johnson had 10. The Eagles shot 39 percent (23 of 59) from the field. Littlejohn added 11 points for Rogers State.

Cory Cole discusses the game: https://youtu.be/Ko51JbvquRA