SHAWNEE – Oklahoma Baptist (7-9, 4-6 GAC) looks to snap its two-game skid tomorrow night in a contest against inner-state rival Southern Nazarene (6-9, 3-7 GAC) at 7:30 p.m. inside the Noble Complex. On Saturday, the Bison make the short trip to Weatherford for a 3:00 p.m. matchup with Southwestern Oklahoma State (5-10, 5-5 GAC).
Fans that plan on attending the matchup against SNU are encouraged to wear white and if you're unable to attend, the Bison Sports Networks Todd Miller and Scott Wanish will be on site to provide coverage.
OPENING TIP OFF
A new slate is ahead for OBU after finishing without a win last week, drawing losses against Arkansas Monticello and Southern Arkansas. As a result, the Bison's record fell to 7-9 with a 4-6 conference mark, good for a tie at 10th in the GAC standings. Oklahoma Baptist is confident they can shake things up as this week's opponents, SNU and SWOSU, have also lost two straight games.
FIGHTING TO THE FINISH
The thorn in OBU's side lately is finishing. Oklahoma Baptist has lost by five points or less in four of its last five games. Those margins are as follows: Henderson State (-5), Arkansas Tech (-3), Arkansas Monticello (-2), and Southern Arkansas (-3). The Bison were within two possessions of winning each of those games.
If you look back to the start of GAC play, the games lost by five or fewer points jump to six. Conversely, OBU's four conference wins have been won by 11 points or more: Southwestern Oklahoma State (+11), Northwestern Oklahoma State (+13), Ouachita Baptist (+15), and Harding (+24).
In all but one league loss (SAU), the Bison were outscored in the second half. On average, OBU charted 36.9 points per game, while its opponents scored 42.3 points per contest. Furthermore, in all but two (SE & SAU), OBU held the lead going into the closing stanza, including a nine-point advantage at UAM.
Another glaring fact in the losses was OBU's field-goal percentage from the first half to the second. Only on one occasion, against Southern Arkansas, did the Bison improve its shooting percentage between halves. After firing 30.0 percent from the floor in the first frame at SAU, OBU improved to 47.0 percent. Otherwise, Oklahoma Baptist's field-goal mark dropped by 4.5 percent or more.
1000-POINT TRACKER
Senior guard Trevin Wade needs 39 points to breach the 1000-point career mark heading into Thursday's game. In 112 collegiate games, he owns a career scoring average of 8.1 ppg.
This season, he pairs the third-best scoring average on the squad (12.3 ppg) with the sixth-most assists in the conference (59). When looking at assists per game, Wade averages the fourth-most in the GAC (4.2). He adds 67 rebounds (4.8/gm), including five or more in the last six games.
TRUE FRESHMAN
Terry Coner Jr. is making a solid bid for GAC Freshman of the Year with his 17.2 ppg average, the best among rookies. He has shot 45.5 percent from the floor, the best mark among guards for OBU.
Despite a slight drop in his scoring rate two weeks ago, the first-year phenom bounced back with 39 points (19.5 ppg) in Arkansas against UAM and SAU. Against the Boll Weevils, he produced 22 points on 52.9 percent shooting and knocked down four three-pointers (4-8) for the fourth time this season.
Coner has six 20-point performances this season, the most by any freshman in the program's Division II era. The next closest, Jarius Hicklen, recorded three in 2019-2020.
EFFICIENT WORK
Joshua Udoumoh scored a season-high 16 points on 6-of-10 (60.0%) shooting in Saturday's matchup against SAU. It was two off his career-best (18), earned against the Muleriders in last year's GAC tournament. He added five rebounds and collected two steals, a combination he has produced two other times this season.
Udomouh has been quite efficient lately, shooting above 50.0 percent in the last four games. His 62.5 percent field goal mark against Harding on Jan. 13 highlighted the span. On the year, he shoots 45.1 percent from the field.
SCOUTING SOUTHERN NAZARENE
Southern Nazarene is 6-9 this season with a 3-7 mark in conference, records uncharacteristic of the Crimson Storm.
Since the 2017-18 season, SNU has won the GAC regular season title four times and compiled 102 conference wins (before 2023-24). Overall, their record was 139-40 (77.6%) during the span.
A season ago, the Crimson Storm nearly reached the Elite Eight of the NCAA DII Tournament but fell to Minnesota Duluth in the DII Central Region Championship game. After the season, long-time head coach Adam Bohac departed to the University of Central Missouri.
Now at the helm for SNU is BJ Foster, who owns a career record of 105-79. Before taking over in Bethany, Foster spent six seasons at California State-San Marcos.
Southern Nazarene has the 10th-worst scoring defense in the GAC, allowing 75.0 points per game. They've lost four conference games by 11 or more points, including a 15-point loss to Southeastern Oklahoma State on Nov. 11. SNU also commits the second-most turnovers per game in the league (13.9). In fact, the Crimson Storm have had 38 turnovers in the last three games (ATU-14, SAU-12, UAM-12).
The Storm's leading scorer is sophomore guard Cam Slaymaker, whose 17.3 ppg average ranks sixth in the conference. Slaymaker shoots 45.1 percent from the field and leads the team in three-point makes (28) at a 38.4 percent shooting rate.
Two other SNU players are averaging double figures, Ben Baker-McCann (12.0) and Benno Zecic (12.0). Baker-McCann heads the Crimson Storm in rebounds (103) and has contributed the second-most assists (30). Zecic has the second-most assists in the league (87), averaging 5.8 per game.
SCOUTING SOUTHWESTERN OKLAHOMA STATE
Southwestern Oklahoma State is 5-10 (5-5 GAC) on the year and will face Northwestern Oklahoma State tomorrow before returning home for OBU on Saturday. As mentioned, the Bulldogs have lost two straight. SWOSU fell 56-60 at Harding and 74-82 at Arkansas Tech a week ago.
This weekend's game will be Southwestern's second go against the Bison this season. On November 30, Oklahoma Baptist defeated SWOSU 63-52 in Shawnee in the GAC opener. It was a tie for Southwestern's worst loss against a league opponent. The Bulldogs committed 14 turnovers in the matchup and shot 5-of-13 at the free throw line. Since then, Southwestern has produced eight games with 10 or more turnovers.
The Bulldogs are the second-worst shooting team in the GAC, netting 43.4 percent of its attempts. Conversely, Southwestern limits its opponents to a league-best 42.2 percent field-goal mark. Only one team has finished above 50.0 percent shooting against SWOSU this season (ATU-57.4%).
Southwestern is led by a first-year head coach, Brett Weiberg, who spent the last five seasons at MIAA affiliate Missouri Western. Weiberg owns a career record 52-102 (.335).
Leading the scoring attack is senior guard Ben Smith. He averages 18.1 ppg, fifth-most in the conference, while shooting 47.1 percent from the field. From beyond the arc, the guard is firing 38.7 percent (24-62). Smith adds the second-most rebounds (100) and assists (25) for the Bulldogs.
SWOSU's second-leading scorer is guard Jalen Johnson, whose 10.5 ppg average comes with a 35.7 percent field goal mark. Mark Berry has the most rebounds (108) and scores 8.9 ppg, while MJ Warrior pairs a team-high 18 steals with an 8.8 ppg average.
