OKLAHOMA CITY – Chris Brown registered a season-high 29 points in Oklahoma City University's 72-59 senior-night victory over USAO on Monday at Abe Lemons Arena.
Brown, a senior from Spencer, Okla., equaled the season high he scored against St. Gregory's on Dec. 5. The Stars, ranked 14th in NAIA Division I men's basketball, moved to 16-7, 14-6 in the Sooner Athletic Conference.
On the game, Brown knocked in 10 of 13 shots from the field, one 3-pointer and 8 of 10 from the free-throw line. Brown scored 19 of the Stars' first 23 points of the contest.
Brown reached 20 points in a game for the ninth time this season.
“That's probably the most efficient he's ever been,” OCU coach Kevin Morrissey said. “He was great out there, so much so that we wanted to sit and watch him. I said that even though it was senior night, we couldn't just sit back. The seniors did a good job. I was pleased Chris Brown and Jerome Phillips finished their senior year 12-1 at home. Jerome had some big 3s.”
Kavon Lytch, a junior from Brooklyn, N.Y., provided OCU its only other double-figure scorer at 14 points. Lytch hauled in a team-high nine rebounds. Bryant Williams, a junior from Austin, Texas, had five points, six rebounds and five blocked shots. He turned in his sixth game of the season with four or more rejections.
“Bryant Williams protects the rim for us,” Morrissey said. “He blocks shots and does a great job. He is playing with a lot of confidence. He's giving us quality minutes.”
OCU finished the contest on a 12-2 spree. Corey Bingham tied the game 55-55 with a free throw, then put the Stars up for good with a putback and free throw with 5:24 left. Graham Faulkner's 3-pointer gave USAO its last lead of the game 55-54 with 6:06 remaining.
USAO clung to the second-period lead until Bingham's free throws put the Stars ahead 46-44 with 9:39 left in the game. Bingham also hit a free throw, and Brown added a jumper to erase a 44-41 deficit.
“I'm looking forward to Corey being a senior,” Morrissey said. “He comes to play most nights and does a good job for us.”
USAO managed only 27.3 percent shooting (9 out of 33 shots) from the field and 2-for-11 shooting on free throws in the second half. USAO finished at 33.3 percent from the floor and 43.8 percent from the free-throw line.
“We made the plays down the stretch,” Morrissey said. “Out of 40 minutes, though, we probably played seven of them. We're tired. This is the third Monday game we've played this month. We need to rest up before the Texas trip.”
OCU overcame a 13-point deficit in the first half. Sean Cummings sank a jumper to put USAO up 32-19 with 4:01 left in the first. The Stars closed out the half on a 10-2 run.
The Stars meet Wayland Baptist (Texas) at 8 p.m. Thursday in Plainview, Texas.
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