Men's Basketball 12.01 KJ Reid | Assistant AD for Creative Media

OBU to Open GAC Play Thursday in Alva

SHAWNEE – The Oklahoma Baptist (3-3, 0-0 GAC) men's basketball team will continue their road tour as they'll open Great American Conference play against Northwestern Oklahoma State (4-1, 0-0 GAC) tomorrow in Alva at 7:30 p.m.

This will be the 130th all-time meeting between the programs and 13th since OBU joined Division II. The Bison hold a 73-56 overall record over the Rangers.

The game will be viewable on the NWOSU Youtube page and heard on the Bison Sports Network featuring Todd Miller on play-by-play and Scott Wanish on color commentary.

OBU is coming off a run at the West Texas A&M Thanksgiving Classic last weekend, where the Bison dropped two nail-biting games against No. 6/7 West Texas A&M and Eastern New Mexico. Down two starters, Oklahoma Baptist still managed to make the contests tough on their opponents, losing by a combined seven points.

Against the highly-touted Aggies, OBU, led by a 24 point performance from Burke Putnam, made WT work for every basket. After trailing the entire contest, the Bison took their first lead late in the second half. However, Oklahoma Baptist sent West Texas to the line with nine seconds left, which eventually ended the game as the Aggies put in a couple to seal their 61-58 victory.

In game two against Eastern New Mexico, the Bison shot 52.9 percent from the field. As good as the shooting clip was, the Greyhounds put in 53.8 percent of their opportunities to beat the Bison 70-66 in Canyon. Jaquan Simms led all scorers with 21 points, while Putnam followed with 19.

This season, the Bison have four players averaging double-digit points. Putnam leads the Bison charge, averaging 23.3 points (46.9% FG), 6.3 rebounds, and 3.3 assists per game. Brantly Thompson ranks number two on the squad in scoring, averaging 15.8 per game. Thompson also leads the team with 22 total assists, averaging 3.6 per contest.

Simms has been a sharpshooter from the arc, making good on over 42 percent of his three-point attempts. Simms leads the Bison with 16 triples, while averaging 12.8 points per game. Harrison Stoddart rounds off OBU's double-digit scorers, averaging 10.0 points per game.

Nigel Wilcox and D.J. Freeman have put in work under the basket, bringing down 46 and 36 rebounds, respectively. Freeman is at 7.8 points per game, while Wilcox is averaging 6.0.

Northwestern enters conference play with a 4-1 overall record. The Rangers have wins over Randall University, Manhattan Christian College, Kansas Christian College, and Northeastern State.

Most recently, NWOSU beat Randall by a score of 113-43. The Rangers held RU to a 27.3 percent field-goal percentage and forced 17 turnovers. Northwestern shot 56.3 percent from the floor, and posted six players in double-digits.

Junior guard Jason Douglas-Stanley leads the Rangers in scoring, averaging 12.2 points per game, including a team-best 11 three-pointers. Forward Larry White averages 11.8 points, while Bubba Furlong and Anthony James have posted a matching 11.4 points per contest. Furlong leads the squad with 42 rebounds and 13 assists.

Vinay Patel is in his third season with NWOSU, holding a 17-31 (35.4%) record during his tenure.

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Players Mentioned

#3 Jaquan Simms: G; 6' 4"; Senior

#20 Harrison Stoddart: F; 6' 7"; Senior

#10 Brantly Thompson: G; 6' 4"; Senior

#4 Nigel Wilcox: F; 6' 5"; Junior

#1 D.J. Freeman: F; 6' 6"; Freshman

#5 Burke Putnam: G; 6' 3"; Senior

Players Mentioned

#3 Jaquan Simms
: 6' 4"; Senior
: G

#20 Harrison Stoddart
: 6' 7"; Senior
: F

#10 Brantly Thompson
: 6' 4"; Senior
: G

#4 Nigel Wilcox
: 6' 5"; Junior
: F

#1 D.J. Freeman
: 6' 6"; Freshman
: F

#5 Burke Putnam
: 6' 3"; Senior
: G