TULSA, Okla. (March 8, 2019) – This whole underdog thing seems to work for Oklahoma Christian at the Heartland Conference Championship men's basketball tournament.

For the second straight season, Oklahoma Christian has provided the upset of the tournament in the quarterfinals. Propelled by a stellar defensive effort and Will Lienhard's rebounding, the sixth-seeded Eagles knocked off third-seeded Lubbock Christian (Texas) 56-48 on Friday night in a taut, tense thriller at the Union Multipurpose Activity Center.

OC (11-17) advanced to face second-seeded Dallas Baptist (Texas) (22-9) on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. in what will be a rematch of last season's Heartland tournament title game, won by the Patriots. Lubbock Christian (20-9) – which entered the tournament at No. 4 in the NCAA's South Central Region rankings and had won eight of its last nine games – will likely made the Division II tournament field when it's announced Sunday.

Last season, a seventh-seeded OC squad downed No. 2 seed (and nationally ranked) Arkansas-Fort Smith and sixth-seeded St. Edward's (Texas) to advance to the title game. Obviously, the Eagles know how to win in the Heartland tournament.

"I knew my guys were ready Wednesday at the (pre-tournament) banquet," OC coach Cory Cole said. "We embrace opportunity and challenges. They bring us together. It was good to go out and play against a well-coached Lubbock Christian team. That was a battle. That was two teams giving it their all for 40 minutes. I'm just proud of my guys."

OC's win over the Chaparrals was its second in three games this season, and the formula was similar as in the first win – limit 3-point shooting opportunities and play lockdown defense. OC did just that, limiting the Chaparrals to just 2-of-16 3-point shooting and 35.2 percent overall.  Lubbock Christian failed to score at least 50 points for only the second time all season and the two 3-pointers matched its season low.

But the Chaparrals also played salty defense. Lubbock Christian entered the game ranked in the top 25 in Division II in field-goal percentage defense (41.0) and limited the Eagles to 36.7-percent shooting. The difference for OC was its rebounding – the Eagles held a commanding 46-30 edge in that category, led by Lienhard, and 17 of those were offensive rebounds, leading to 17 second-chance points.

"We forced some guys to take tough shots, but when you give them two or three chances, a team doesn't have to shoot a great percentage," Lubbock Christian coach Todd Duncan said.

Lienhard, a senior from Oklahoma City who led Division II in rebounding for most of the season but entered the tournament second on the national list at 12.5 per game, set a Heartland tournament single-game record with 18 rebounds, to go with 10 points and two blocked shots. The double-double was the eighth of the season for Lienhard, the Heartland's co-defensive player of the year.

"I know I'm not going to score a lot of points, so I'm just trying to make sure the people I'm guarding aren't scoring," Lienhard said. "We've got plenty of great offensive players who can score, so my job is defense and they take care of the offense."

OC trailed only once, at 2-0. York Benjamin started and fueled an early 9-0 run by the Eagles with three short-range baskets and the Eagles never trailed again.

Lubbock Christian hit just 9 of 28 shots and scored only 18 points in the first half, allowing OC to gradually build its lead. A long 3-pointer by senior Braden Eggleston made it 19-12 at the 7:37 mark and was part of a 13-4 run. Senior Roderick Smith, who led OC with 13 points, ended it with a layup that put OC up 27-16 and Aubrey Johnson's basket in the final minute gave the Eagles a 31-18 halftime lead.

The Chaparrals scored the first six points of the second half to cut their deficit to seven, but every time they edged closer, OC seemed to have an answer. OC led 42-31 at the 7:28 mark before a 10-2 run by Lubbock Christian, capped by the Chaparrals' first 3-pointer of the game, by Brennan Fowler (a first-team All-Heartland pick) with 4:06 left. That pulled them within 44-41.

Smith answered with two free throws and Brian Carey hit a tough layup with one second remaining on the shot clock, restoring OC's lead to 48-41 with 3:01 left. Silas Crisler followed with Lubbock Christian's other 3-pointer, with 2:44 left, but Lienhard took advantage of an opening created when Fowler – the Chaparrals' burly center – charged toward midcourt to try and trap Carey. Carey flipped a pass to Lienhard for a layup to make it 50-44.

Senior Jordan Box, quiet for most of the night, went 4 of 4 from the free-throw line in the final 40.2 seconds while the Chaparrals missed their final four shots.

"I would credit Oklahoma Christian for how they came out and performed," Duncan said. "They just whipped us. They were stronger to the ball (and) the offensive glass. They just made it hard for us. I thought they had a lot of talent all along. We didn't overlook them. We just didn't play well. I give them credit."

Fowler led Lubbock Christian with 17 points, eight rebounds and four blocks, while Isaac Asrat – the Chaparrals' other All-Heartland player – had 10 points but went 3 of 11 from the field, including 0 of 4 from 3-point range.

Box, a second-team All-Heartland pick, had eight points, Carey had seven points and four assists and Eggleston had six points and seven rebounds in 13 key minutes off the bench for the Eagles.

"I thank the Man upstairs," Cole said. "I'm blessed. I have the best coaching staff in the country, brothers I work with, a team that believes. We get better as the season goes on because we're truly family. If you don't get excited about playing in games like this, then you don't have a pulse. Our guys were just ready tonight."

OC postgame press conference: https://youtu.be/NukMRb0GEJI