SHAWNEE – Oklahoma Baptist (9-5, 6-2 GAC) returns to Shawnee for a matchup against Southwestern Oklahoma State (7-7, 3-5 GAC) on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. before traveling to Northwestern Oklahoma State (6-6, 2-6 GAC) for a 3 p.m. game on Saturday.
Both contests will be called on the
Bison Radio Network featuring the play-by-play commentary of Todd Miller and color commentary of Scott Wanish. Thursday's game will broadcasted live on the
Bison Sports Network, while Saturday's game can be viewed on the Northwestern Oklahoma State Athletics
Youtube page.
Tomorrow marks the 144th meeting with SWOSU in program history. OBU holds an all-time series lead 72-71 over the Bulldogs. Saturday will the 133rd meeting with the Rangers, with the all-time series leaning in favor of OBU, 76-56.
LAST TIME OUT
Oklahoma Baptist capped its Arkansas road trip with a 77-74 victory over Arkansas Tech inside Tucker Coliseum last Saturday. OBU stumped a streaking Arkansas Tech squad that had won its third straight game Thursday night, besting nationally ranked Southern Nazarene.
KING'S COURT
Paul King was named the GAC Player of the Week after leading Oklahoma Baptist to two big conference wins over Harding and Arkansas Tech last week. It is the second time King has earned the weekly conference award this season. He picked up his first nod in December after averaging 27.0 ppg over a two-game span versus Southwestern Oklahoma State and Northwestern Oklahoma State. King is the second Bison to garner multiple league player of the week awards in a season since OBU moved to Division II, joining Burke Putnam, who claimed the accolade five times in 2021-22.
In OBU's last-minute victory over HU, King went for 22 points on 9-15 shooting (60%), dished out four assists, and led the team with eight rebounds. He scored the game-tying bucket before clinching the victory with two free throws with 11 seconds remaining. On Saturday versus Arkansas Tech, King scored 21 points on 9-18 (50%) shooting and poked away a team-high three steals. He scored 13 points in the first half alone, including nine in the last 10 minutes. Again, King's heroics were on display as his three-pointer with 45 seconds left gave OBU the cushion it needed to wrap up the win.
King nearly doubled his point total from the week before last, recording 24 points on 31% shooting against Henderson State (1/5/23) and Ouachita Baptist (1/7/23). Furthermore, he recorded just one steal. Last week, he improved his shooting percentage to 54.5% and tallied six steals.
FLIPPING THE SCRIPT
The Bison made drastic improvements from previous games against two GAC opponents on Jan. 5 and 7. Versus Henderson State (1/5) and Ouachita Baptist (1/7), OBU shot 42.4% from the free throw line, lost the turnover margin battle 25-23 while charting six steals and held its opponents to an average field-goal percentage of 43.9%.
Last week, Oklahoma Baptist flipped the script. The Bison's free throw percentage improved to 78.1%, and they won the turnover margin battle 24-31 after forcing 31 turnovers and collecting 16 steals. Furthermore, OBU held its two opponents to a lower field goal percentage of 41.2%.
ROLE PLAYERS
Trey Doomes and Ricky Brown averaged double figures in points last week, further proving why they're valuable role players in the lineup. The duo's work extended beyond the points category as they tied for the team-best in rebounds (10), averaging 5.0 per game. Neither missed a free throw, led by Doomes' 9-9 showing at the charity stripe.
Brown shot the best of all starters, charting an 8-12 (66.7%) tally from the field to go along with the second-most steals (5). His closeout on Harding's final three-point attempt helped secure the victory over the Bisons. Doomes added five assists and a steal to complete his two-game stat sheet.
This season, Doomes is second on the team in scoring (12.6 ppg), while Brown ranks fifth at 9.5 ppg. Additionally, both have 20 or more steals.
SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
Southwestern Oklahoma State enters Saturday with a 7-7 overall record, including a 3-5 mark in GAC play. The Bulldogs are tied two spots above last place with East Central in the league standings.
SWOSU is coming off its second win since the start of the new year, as they beat Henderson State 75-70 last Saturday. Southwestern knocked down 11 triples for the fourth time this season, netting 40.7% of their three-point attempts against the Reddies.
The Bulldogs suffered a 91-73 defeat at the hands of OBU in its conference opener on Dec. 1. Led by Paul King's 36 points, the Bison shot 60.4% and forced 22 SWOSU turnovers. Furthermore, three other Oklahoma Baptist players reached double figures in points in the contest. Since battling OBU, Southwestern has won three of its last seven games.
Southwestern has not struggled to score the ball, ranking as the fourth-best offense in the GAC (75.1 ppg). However, the baskets haven't come easy, as their 41.1% field goal mark is the worst in the conference.Statistics that stick are the Bulldogs' number of free throws and three-point attempts per game. Southwestern sits atop the league with 23.7 free throws and 26.2 three-point shots per contest. The output matches the efficiency as 14.5 free throws per game are the best in the GAC, while 8.5 three-point makes per game rank third.
The tandem of forward Ben Smith and point guard Kamden Gispon lead the way offensively at 13.9 and 13.1 ppg. Gipson leads the conference in three-pointers (41) to go along with an outstanding 2.17 assist/turnover ratio that is second. Smith has the second-most free throw makes in the GAC (49), averaging 3.5 per game. Sophomore guard Nate Goodlow averages 7.0 ppg while leading the league and ranking seventh in DII for steals (35). Down low, DeAngelo Adkins ranks fourth in the GAC for blocks and leads Southwestern in rebounds (88).
SCOUTING THE RANGERS
Northwestern Oklahoma State will take on East Central tomorrow before welcoming Oklahoma Baptist onto its home court on Saturday.
The Rangers hold a 6-6 overall record, including a 2-6 mark against GAC opponents. NWOSU had tallied two straight victories over Arkansas-Monticello and Henderson State before falling to Ouachita Baptist 83-75 last Saturday. With the loss, they are ranked two spots above last in the GAC standings.
NWOSU fell to OBU 70-62 earlier this season in a game where Paul King and Ricky Brown scored 18 points apiece. Despite charting a lower field-goal percentage than the Rangers, OBU out-rebounded and forced 22 turnovers to pull out the victory.
Northwestern stands out in two categories: total blocks and scoring offense. The Rangers boast the 10th-best blocks per game rate in the country (4.9) while ranking as No. 3 scoring offense in the league (75.8 ppg). A bit of its offensive production can be credited to its ability to pull down offensive rebounds, as the Rangers average 11.6 per contest. The mark is fourth in the GAC.
Alva is home to the most feared scoring threat in the conference, Malik Parsons. The senior guard averages 21.7 ppg, which is 14th in the country. Additionally, he leads the GAC in free throws (60) and ranks second in field goals (90).
Brian Free and Larry White wrap up the NWOSU players in double figures, scoring 13.7 and 10.3 ppg. Redshirt freshman Shavaul Butters is pulling down a team-best 7.3 rebounds per game, totaling 88 this season.
