SHAWNEE – The start of basketball season is upon us and Oklahoma Baptist seems primed for a solid campaign over the next few months.
The key reason behind this thought: experience.
Ricky Brown,
Daniel Ransom,
Nathan Wilson and
Joshua Udoumoh played in every game (28) last season while
Terry Coner Jr. and
Efe Sekeroglu played in 27. Plus, based off last year's scoring totals, the Bison return 83 percent of their scoring.
Furthermore, it cannot be understated how adversity can bring a team together. In 2023-24, the Bison played in 17 games that were decided by single digits. OBU fell in 13 of those.
As the Bison start their season at the American Family Insurance Classic hosted by Minnesota Duluth, here are notes on the team as well as info on their opponents.
We've Got Options
Coner Jr., last year's GAC Freshman of the Year, is one of the key scorers for coach
Jason Eaker. The Birmingham, Ala., native scored 426 points last season, the most by a freshman since OBU joined the NCAA ranks in 2015-16. Brown, a career 38.4 percent three-point shooter, and All-GAC selection last year, also returns. A native of Valdosta, Ga., Brown averaged 14.1 points per game and made an impressive 97.6 percent from the foul line.
Rounding out OBU's top returning scoring options are Ransom and Wilson. Both frontcourt players, Ransom scored 11 points per game and grabbed 6.2 rebounds for OBU. As for Wilson, he reached double-figure scoring seven times including scoring 20 twice. Wilson also shot a team-best 59.2 percent from the field.
Offensively Speaking
OBU's offense was pretty good last year, averaging 75.6 points per game. That was third-most in the Great American Conference. In 13 of 28 games, the green and gold scored at least 76 including a season-high 107 points against Randall on Nov. 14. One area that the Bison could improve upon is three-point shooting. At 33.1 percent last year, OBU was ninth in the GAC. That total should get a boost as
Ethan Scott, a junior who was injured for most of last season, returns. He's hit nearly 40 percent from deep as a Bison.
Keep An Eye Out For Efe
On Halloween night, the Bison played at nearby FireLake Arena in a scrimmage with Central Oklahoma. Among several things that stood out was 6-foot-10 sophomore
Efe Sekeroglu. The forward from Istanbul, Turkey appeared quicker, decisive and capable of scoring on the block. Last season, Sekeroglu played in 27 games, averaged 11.4 minutes per contest and made 41.9 percent from the field. His best performance was against Randall when he tallied 14 points with nine rebounds.
Aggressive Defense
Over the years, the Bison have employed a defense that's caused plenty of fits to opponents. Last season, OBU was fourth in the league allowing 71.6 points per game. They were also third in steals at 7.07. The Bison will have to replace their top steals artist from a year ago as
Trevin Wade, who accumulated 49, graduated. However, Coner Jr., Brown Ransom and Udoumoh are back to help this cause. Each of those four collected at least 23 last year.
Minnesota Crookston Notes
- Posted a 6-22 record last year in a highly-competitive Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference.
- The Golden Eagles lost their top scorer in Blaize Sagna. He averaged 20.8 points per contest, the 19th-best mark in D2.
- Returning to help lead offensively is Reid Grant. He was UMN Crookston's second-best scorer last year at 14.1 points per game.
- 6-foot-9 redshirt senior Aguek Deng was a force defensively for the Golden Eagles. His 54 blocks were a top-20 NCAA mark in 2023-24.
- The Golden Eagles were picked to finish in 14th in the NSIC Preseason Coaches' Poll.
- In last year's contest with OBU, the Golden Eagles won 69-67 on a three-point shot with 3.0 seconds left from Grant.
Minnesota Duluth Notes
- The Bulldogs went 26-7 last year and made their third straight NCAA Tournament.
- UMD lost its school's all-time points scorer in Drew Blair. He finished with 2,772 career points. In last year's game with the Bison, he scored 33 on 13-of-25 shooting.
- Austin Andrews, a former NSIC Freshman and Player of the Year, returns for UMD. He averaged 9.7 points and made nearly 60 percent from the field.
- UMD was picked to finish in third in the NSIC Preseason Coaches' Poll.
- Last season, the Bulldogs defeated the Bison 77-71 at the Noble Complex.
