PITTSBURGH, Pa. – Oklahoma Baptist (30-3) takes on Cal State East Bay (33-0) on Wednesday, March 25 at 2:30 (ET) in the NCAA Tournament Quarterfinal round from Duquesne University's UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse.
This is the first-ever matchup between the two schools. The winner of the game will move on to play either Michigan Tech or Gannon on Friday, March 27 at 6 p.m. (ET).
The Bison Sports Network's Todd Miller and Dave Myrick will be on location in the Steel City for the broadcast of the game on 100.9 KGFF and on KGFF.com. Below are notes on the two squads.
For the Bison:
- The Bison are 30-3 and won their first NCAA Division II Central Region Championship on March 17 over Minnesota Duluth by an 80-76 score. They are also the first GAC men's team to advance to the Elite Eight.
- OBU's 30 wins are the most in the Division II era (2016-pres.) and that win total is the most by a Great American Conference men's basketball team.
- During the season, the Bison climbed the NABC rankings to a school-record No. 6 ranking on March 3. OBU has been in the NABC poll since the start of the season.
- OBU won the Great American Conference regular season title outright for the first time after a 71-59 road win against Northwestern Oklahoma State on Feb. 26
- Head Coach Jason Eaker owns a 147-84 (.636) record at Oklahoma Baptist. He's 4-1 in the NCAA Tournament and has guided the program to a trio of NCAA Tournament appearances in his eight seasons.
- Eaker was named the GAC Coach of the Year for the second time on March 4.
- Junior guard Terry Coner Jr., was named the Great American Conference Player of the Year on March 4 too. He's the first Bison player to garner the honor. He later was named the Central Region Tournament MVP and earned NABC All-Region honors.
- Teammates Christian Hodge, Joshua Udoumoh and Austin Coner were also named to the Central Region All-Tournament team for their efforts.
- The Bison had an 18-game winning streak at one point this year, which stood at the time as the fourth-longest in the country and best for an OBU team since the 2011-12 campaign.
- At the conclusion of the regular season, OBU placed a school-record four players on the All-GAC Team: Coner Jr., and Jackson Greene were named to the first team while Erik Madrid and Udoumoh garnered honorable mention accolades.
- Defense and rebounding are key for the Bison. They rank 36th in the nation allowing 68.2 points per game and their 9.4 scoring margin is slotted 32nd. OBU also ranks No. 25 in field-goal percentage defense (40.6).
- On the rebounding front, OBU led the Great American Conference in defensive boards per contest (25.58) and total rebounds per game (38.03).
- In 24 of the team's 33 games this season, OBU won the rebounding battle. In two of their three losses (at SAU 12/6 & vs. SNU 3/7), the Bison were out-rebounded.
- Also of note, the Bison limit their mistakes as good as anyone in the country. The team's 9.8 turnovers per game is eighth-best in D2.
- Coner Jr.'s 639 points this season is top-18 single-season scoring mark in OBU history and it is slotted No. 17 in Division II. Plus, his 1,311 career points rank 22nd all-time.
- The playmaking guard also gets to the foul line a good bit. Coner Jr. is 11th in the country with 180 made free throws and he ranks third in OBU single-season history with 251 free throw attempts.
- Defensively, Coner Jr., and Hodge have done something not previously accomplished in the last decade on Bison Hill. They each have 60 steals, becoming the first teammates in the D2 era to reach that total in a single season.
- For Hodge, the outstanding freshman from Houston was the only GAC player to rank top-four in blocks (30) and steals (60) this season.
- OBU's depth has been a main factor to its success as well. Seven different players average at least 6.1 points per game. Plus, these guys have scored at least 10 points in a game this year: Austin Coner, Terry Coner Jr., Christian Hodge, Erik Madrid, Jackson Greene, Seth Grandberry and Joshua Udoumoh.
- Lastly, the Bison are more than comfortable playing away from home. They were 13-0 inside the Noble Complex and 17-3 away from Shawnee. And two of those losses – at Southern Arkansas on Dec. 6 and versus Southern Nazarene on March 7 – were by a combined seven points.
For the Pioneers:
- Cal State East Bay is the only team across all NCAA divisions with a perfect record, sitting at 33-0.
- Just a season ago, the Pioneers were 11-17, marking the 11th time since the 2010-11 campaign that East Bay had a record below .500.
- The Pioneers transitioned to NCAA Division II in 2009-10.
- East Bay cruised through its West Region Tournament, defeating Cal Poly Humboldt, Cal State Dominguez and Point Loma University by an average of 14.3 points.
- Head Coach Bryan Rooney was named NABC West Region Coach of the Year while 6-foot-5 senior guard Tyree Campbell garnered All-District West First Team honors.
- Campbell makes the Pioneers go. He has top-100 NCAA marks in field goals made (87th; 179) and steals (89th; 52) and has scored in double-figures a whopping 28 times this season.
- As a team, East Bay has several quality NCAA marks. They are sixth in the nation in scoring defense (63.1) and seventh in three-point field goal percentage defense (28.7).
- The Pioneers are also No. 14 nationally forcing 17.18 turnovers per game. Lastly, East Bay has a top-20 NCAA mark in offensive rebounds per contest (13.91).
- There are two main concerns for Coach Rooney's team: fouling and free throw shooting. Of 289 Division II teams ranked, the Pioneers are 253rd, fouling 19.2 times per contest. They also sit dead-last, converting just 60.9 percent from the charity stripe.
- One last individual note, 6-foot-9 senior Joshua Ijeh leads the California Collegiate Athletic Association with 52 blocks. That total is also slotted 26th in D2.
