OKLAHOMA CITY – John Brown (Ark.) came up with the clutch plays to defeat Oklahoma City University 69-64 on Saturday at Abe Lemons Arena.

The Stars fell to 5-5, 3-4 in the Sooner Athletic Conference, while John Brown, ranked 23rd in NAIA Division I men's basketball, improved to 12-4, 4-4 in the SAC.

OCU went scoreless for 3:24, starting with 9:02 remaining in the game. John Brown scored six unanswered points until Kavon Lytch broke the Stars' spell with a layup at the 5:36 mark. John Brown took the lead for good during that stretch, turning a 50-49 OCU edge to a 55-50 John Brown advantage.

John Brown continued that surge, turning it into a 12-2 run. Adrian Miller's layup put John Brown up 62-51 for his team's largest lead of the contest.

“It was a close game, but it was a disappointing loss,” OCU coach Kevin Morrissey said. “We were up 10-2 and had some other leads, but couldn't pull away. We had guys take the night off. We're not good enough to overcome that.”

Lytch, a junior from Brooklyn, N.Y., led OCU with 26 points and nine rebounds. Corey Bingham, a junior from Lynn, Mass., added 16 points, nine rebounds and four steals.

Davaughn Jackson topped four John Brown double-digit scorers with 17 points. John Brown improved on a 37.1 percent first-half shooting effort to hit 45.8 percent from the field in the second period.

“We played defense with our hands down,” Morrissey said. “You have to contest shots. I told the guys that John Brown had lost three in a row and would be hungry for a win.”

OCU built a 10-2 lead early as John Brown missed six of its first seven shots from the floor. Bingham sank two 3-pointers, while Jeremy McCarty hit a free throw and a trey.

Down 21-19, OCU outscored John Brown 12-3 to build a 31-24 lead. Lytch scored the first seven points of that run, getting a transition dunk.

John Brown answered by going on an 11-0 run that gave the Golden Eagles a 35-31 edge with 18:04 remaining in the game.