SHAWNEE – A last-second Minnesota Crookston (2-0, 0-0 NSIC) triple with three ticks remaining lifted the Golden Eagles over Oklahoma Baptist (0-2, 0-0 GAC) in Saturday's nightcap of the GAC/NSIC Challenge.
Crookston's dagger overshadowed a 24-point outing from freshman guard Terry Coner Jr. The first-year player went 9-of-11 from the charity stripe while posting a 43.7 (7-16) field goal percentage.
Additionally, he recorded five steals, three assists and pulled down three boards.
Just before UMN's last shot, Coner Jr. iced the game with two free throws to put OBU ahead by two. But, it was to no avail as Reid Grant cashed in from range ahead of the final buzzer.
OBU shot 37.3 percent from the floor, while the Golden Eagles posted a 49.1 percent clip. The opposition also held advantages in points in the paint (32-26) and three-point percentage (47.1-23.8).
To start, the squads traded buckets until the Bison etched out a four-point lead following a 4-0 run at the 12:10 mark. A few minutes later, Crookston tied the game at 19-all, courtesy of a three-point make from Peter Fuchs.
This action prompted an 11-0 spurt that left the Bison behind 27-19. But the success was short-lived as OBU outscored UMN 10-4 to draw within two. Coner Jr. scored seven during the span.
Minnesota Crookston kept their lead till Ricky Brown netted a triple as time expired for a 35-33 Oklahoma Baptist advantage going into the locker room.
OBU remained in tune after the break, scoring six points to Crookston's three for a 41-36 lead. Then MNU evened the margin just before the 10-minute mark at 44 following a pull-up jumper from Grant.
Oklahoma Baptist would out-run the Golden Eagles by as much as eight (63-55) over the next seven minutes, but it didn't faze the opposition.
UMN ended the game on an 11-5 run before Grant sealed the deal. OBU's only points came on five free throws during the stretch.
Another offensive notable was a 17-point showing from Brown, his second-straight double-digit performance. Brown coupled the total with a 5-for-5 mark from the free throw line.
Nathan Wilson scored nine points and collected a team-high eight rebounds, while Joshua Udoumoh tallied five points. Additionally, Jose Waring recorded six boards in 28 minutes of work.
Next up, Oklahoma Baptist takes on Randall University on Tuesday, Nov. 14. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. inside the Noble Complex.
