Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament
6:15 p.m. Tuesday, March 3
Rip Griffin Center in Lubbock, Texas
THE MATCHUP: Oklahoma City University begins play in the Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament against host Lubbock Christian (Texas).
ABOUT THE STARS: OCU, which has won the past two NAIA Division I championships, ended the regular season with a 74-70 loss to Oklahoma Christian on Saturday at the Eagles Nest in the Backyard Brawl. OCU (15-15, 8-14 in the SAC) gave itself the eighth seed with the result. Jamel White poured in a season-high 33 points, nailing 8 of 15 beyond from the arc.
White, a 6-foot-4 junior from Brooklyn, N.Y., paces the Stars, averaging 16.8 points per game and 5.1 rebounds. White is a third-team all-SAC selection.
Vinicius Telo, a 6-8 sophomore from Ribeirao Preto, Brazil, followed with 14 points, 12 from behind the 3-point line. Richard Jackson, a 6-0 senior from Bronx, N.Y., added 10 points, four assists and three steals to the effort. Jackson, who was honorable-mention all-SAC, averages 12.4 points and 3.1 rebounds per game.
Marlon Jones, a 6-10 senior from Greenville, N.C., leads the Stars' defense, averaging six boards per game. DaVell Jackson, a 6-1 junior from Las Vegas, adds 9.6 points, 4.3 assists and 1.77 steals a game. DaVell Jackson was honorable-mention all-SAC.
OCU leads the series against Lubbock Christian 29-7. The Stars fell to Lubbock Christian 74-59 on Feb. 5 at the Rip Griffin Center in Lubbock, Texas. OCU and Lubbock Christian also met in last year's SAC Tournament quarterfinals with the Stars prevailing 88-77 on March 6, 2008.
ABOUT THE CHAPARRALS: Lubbock Christian fell to Southern Nazarene 76-46 on Saturday at the Sawyer Center in Bethany, Okla. Lubbock finished the regular season 13-15, 8-14 in the SAC. Kenny Hewitt led Lubbock Christian's offense with 21 points.
Benoit Bekono grabbed a team-high 10 boards in the matchup and posted six points and three assists. Bekono, 6-7 junior, averages 5.4 points and leads the team in rebounding at 6.4 per game.
Hewitt, a 6-7 sophomore, paces the Chaparrals, averaging 19.1 points and 3.1 assists per game. Tommy Lane, 6-0 junior, follows averaging 10.6 points and 2.5 steals.
ABOUT THE COACHES: Kevin Morrissey is in his first season as OCU head coach. Morrissey spent the past four seasons as St. Gregory's coach. He also has been an assistant at Missouri State and Texas-Pan American. Morrissey played his college ball at Oklahoma Baptist and Oral Roberts and high school at Bishop McGuinness in Oklahoma City.
John Copeland is in his 29th season as Lubbock Christian coach. Copeland has led the Chaparrals to three national-tournament appearances, guiding Lubbock Christian to the NAIA quarterfinals in 2001. Copeland has a head-coaching record of 437-397.
OTHER SAC TOURNAMENT FIRST-ROUND GAMES: John Brown (Ark.) vs. St. Gregory's, 4:30 p.m.; USAO vs. Wayland Baptist (Texas), 8 p.m.; Mid-America Christian vs. Southern Nazarene, 9:45 p.m.
OCU ATHLETICS PODCENTER NOW AVAILABLE: If you want to listen to past game broadcasts and pregame and postgame interviews with Coach Morrissey, go to the OCU athletics prodcenter. Go here, then iTunes will open. Then click on athletics and men's basketball.
GIVE THE HOTLINE A CALL: Fans can follow the Stars via the OCU Athletic Hotline at (405) 208-5400. Get the score and highlights after the game on the hotline. Call the SAC Hotline at (405) 878-2110 for league results.
ON THE AIR: Lubbock Christian will provide a live audio broadcast and live stats of the game. Listen by clicking here and view the stats by clicking here.
