SHAWNEE – An outstanding second-half defensive performance turned a one-point halftime lead into a blowout victory for Oklahoma Baptist on Saturday against Northwestern Oklahoma State. OBU won 74-52 and improved to 9-3 overall and 6-0 in the Great American Conference.
Worth noting: the last time the Bison program had a 9-3 record through 12 contests it made the NCAA Tournament in 2020-21.
Terry Coner Jr. scored a team-high 19 points and connected on a career-best five 3-pointers while handing out five assists.
Ricky Brown added 14 with four 3-point makes while
JC Curry and
Daniel Ransom contributed 12 points apiece. Plus,
Nathan Wilson had two blocks and a career-high five assists.
The game started as a tightly-contested battle, with both teams exchanging leads in the first half. Northwestern's Max Alexander carried the offensive load, scoring a game-high 23 points, but it was Oklahoma Baptist's balanced attack that proved too much for the visitors. Coner Jr. and Brown aided the effort in the first which helped the Bison attain a 30-29 lead thanks largely to their efficiency from beyond the arc, shooting 42.9 percent in the first half. For the Rangers, Alexander's aggressive drives and DaRaun Clark's timely three-pointers proved beneficial.
In the second stanza, OBU turned up the heat. Their defense locked in, forcing turnovers and holding Northwestern to just 27.6 percent shooting from the field. In fact, through the first 11 minutes and six seconds of the second half, the Bison held the visitors to just 10 points.
Meanwhile, Coner Jr. and Curry orchestrated a potent offense that scored 44 second-half points. The Bison dominated on the boards, grabbing 40 rebounds to the Rangers' 31, with Ransom pulling down nine boards.
Fast break points proved pivotal too, with the green and gold tallying 16 compared to Northwestern's single point. The home team also capitalized on their depth, getting 14 points from the bench. The Bison's largest lead came late in the game when
Matthew Veen's layup put them up by 25, sealing the victory.
OBU will hit the road for its next two games. On Jan. 9 at 7:30, they will play at Arkansas Tech followed by a Jan. 11 date with Harding.
