DURANT, Okla. – Tonight meant a lot, but not everything, as an 80-76 loss to SEOSU matters but does not determine the rest of Oklahoma Baptist's season. OBU threatened late in the second half, but Southeastern Oklahoma State made enough shots to keep the Bison out of reach of a likely regular-season Great American Conference Championship on Friday night inside the Bloomer Sullivan Arena.
Oklahoma Baptist was outscored 54-28 in the paint, the largest culprit of tonight's loss. Still, OBU fared well shooting from the floor, ending the contest with a 46.9 percent shooting clip.
Defensively, the Bison held the conference-leading three-point team to their second-lowest percentage from behind the arc this season. The Savage Storm came in shooting 38.3 percent from range, but only knocked down 4-of-16 (25%) attempts tonight. OBU tied their season-best total from the three-point line, charting 11 at a 44.0 percent clip.
The two evenly matched squads put on one of the season's best games and were nearly tied in multiple statistical categories. However, SEOSU led for 69.2 percent of the game and shut the door on the Bison each time they attacked.
Six minutes into the first half, OBU held a 15-8 advantage, highlighted by eight points from Jaquan Simms. The Bison shot 50 percent from the field during the stretch and netted three triples while holding the opposition to 22 percent shooting.
Southeastern started to chip away at their deficit over the next four minutes, ripping off a 13-6 run to take a 21-19 lead. This wouldn't faze Oklahoma Baptist as they'd respond cut their deficit to one, 27-16, after a Trey Green triple.
Finally, the Bison overcame with a Brantly Thompson three to go up 32-31 with 4:10 left to play in the first.
The lead would stand for a few moments, but SEOSU regained control in the remaining minutes to take a 38-36 advantage going into the break.
In the second, Thompson came out on fire, scoring seven straight points to give Oklahoma Baptist a 43-42 lead.
Southeastern would hit timely shots after another until OBU crept back into the contest.
With 2:48 left, the score read 75-68, SEOSU. The Bison comeback commenced.
Oklahoma Baptist held the Savage Storm scoreless over the next 2:50, allowing them to make a 10-point rally for a 76-75 lead. This would be the last lead for the Bison.
Following Putnam's go-ahead bucket, SEOSU answered with a point and didn't look back.
Jaquan Simms threw up a prayer with two seconds remaining, but it fell short as tonight's game came to a close.
Thompson led OBU with 20 points, including four three-pointers, while Simms scored 19. Simms charted 11 in the first half and also knocked down four triples. He added a team-best seven assists to his stat sheet.
Putnam finished with 13 points, eight rebounds, and eight assists. Nigel Wilcox rounds off the notables with eight points on a perfect 4-for-4 shooting night.
SEOSU's Adam Dworsky scored 25 points while Ante Brzovic charted 22. Jett Sternberger and Kellen Manek rounded off Southeastern's double-digit scorers with 12 and 11.
Next up for Oklahoma Baptist is the regular-season finale against East Central on Saturday. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. in Ada.
