SHAWNEE – Trailing by as much as 17 points in the second half, Oklahoma Baptist (13-16, 10-12 GAC) came storming back to take the lead late in Thursday's GAC quarterfinals game against Southern Arkansas (20-9, 15-7), but the Muleriders outlasted the Bison and prevailed 71-67 to advance to the next round of the conference tournament.
OBU went scoreless over the game's last 3:04, allowing SAU to overcome a four-point deficit to overtake the lead and pull out the victory.
The Bison shot 42.6 percent from the floor for the game, while the Muleriders finished at a 39.1 percent clip. From deep, neither squad shot over 25 percent, led by SAU's six three-point makes.
The glaring difference came in turnovers as OBU committed 11, including six in the second half, to the Muleriders' five. Southern Arkansas capitalized off the Bison miscues, recording 13 points off the turnovers.
Freshman Joshua Udoumoh shined on the big stage, finishing with a career-high in points (18) on 53.8 percent shooting. In fact, nine of Udomouh's total came in the closing half. He also dished out a team-best four assists.
Ricky Brown chimed in 16 points and brought down 10 rebounds to record his first double-double of the season. The shooting success of Brown and Udoumoh in the second stanza was instrumental in OBU's rally, as Brown led the team with 10 points.
Also collecting a double-double was Nigel Wilcox. The senior forward scored 14 points and collected 11 rebounds in his last game as a Bison. Wilcox recorded seven of his boards in the second half, including four on the offensive end.
Caleb Riggs, also making his final start with OBU, finished with eight points and three rebounds.
Oklahoma Baptist started on a good note, leading by as much as seven (18-11) through the game's first 12 minutes. Then the Muleriders went on a 13-4 run to attain the lead (24-22) at the 8:11 mark.
The Bison managed 10 points for the remainder of the half, while SAU carved out 19 for a 43-32 halftime advantage.
Southern Arkansas built upon their momentum early in the second half, but a second-chance layup from Wilcox turned the tide of the contest. OBU erased the deficit with an 18-2 run to trail by one, 51-50, with 13 minutes left. But again, a stingy Mulerider squad kept the Bison scoreless for three minutes to go up by seven.
Oklahoma Baptist closed the gap once more, but it was to no avail as SAU escaped with the win.
OBU closes its 2022-23 campaign with a 13-16 record and a 10-12 mark in conference play.
