Men's Basketball 11/22/2011 10:52:00 PM

OCU knocks off Mid-America Christian 83-73

Morton tallies 18 points to lead Stars

Orlan Jackman notched his first double-double with OCU, scoring 11 points and pulling down 15 rebounds.

OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma City University posted its first Sooner Athletic Conference men's basketball victory under Dionne Phelps 83-73 over Mid-America Christian on Tuesday at the Gaulke Activity Center.
Tim Morton, a sophomore from Capital Heights, Md., boosted OCU with 18 points and five rebounds. The Stars improved to 4-1, 1-0 in the SAC.
Troynell Adams, a junior from Chicago, came off the pine to provide OCU 16 points and five rebounds while hitting all six of his shots from the field. C.J. Busby, a junior from Beaumont, Texas, chipped in 12 points, five rebounds and three 3-pointers for the Stars. Orlan Jackman, a senior from London, recorded his first double-double as a Star with 11 points and 15 rebounds.
OCU shot 51.8 percent from the floor – including 54.8 percent in the first half. Mid-America shot 38.2 percent.
“It's always good to get a victory,” Phelps said. “This felt good. It was a good start. This gave us an opportunity to go out on the road.”
The Stars overcame committing 30 turnovers.
“I'm not pleased with the turnover situation, but we came out with the win,” Phelps said. “We were prepared for the 1-3-1 and the 2-3 zone, but then all of a sudden our guards wanted to make things happen instead of letting the offense come to them. Give Mid-America credit, they had a good game plan.
“Early on they got out and pushed the ball. The decision making is not where we want it to be. Those guys have to get better at that if they want to succeed this year at a high level. We'll work on that in practice.”
Morton shot 7-for-11 from the field and 4-for-5 from the free-throw line. Morton overcame foul trouble as he played with four fouls the final 3:46.
“He's starting to have confidence in himself, and his teammates are getting confidence in him,” Phelps said. “This is a good sign for him. He has to continue to work. We're fortunate he was able to stay out there and help us.”
Elhadji Wade recorded a 3-point play to put OCU its largest lead of the game 65-41 with 8:45 remaining in the game.
Mid-America Christian responded with a 13-3 run as Brandon Williams scored seven points. Cameron Langster's putback cut OCU's lead to 74-65 at the 2:53 mark.
The Stars protected their lead by hitting 7 of 8 free throws in the final 2:39 of the game. Adams scored on a lay-in to give OCU an 81-67 cushion with 1:03 left.
OCU built a first-half double-digit lead by reeling off an 8-0 run. Adams punctuated the run by knocking down a 3-pointer, then dunking off an inbounds pass from Jackman. The Stars led 23-10 at 10:32 remaining in the first half.
Morton dropped in a turnaround hook shot in the lane to give OCU a 27-13 lead with 7:42 showing. Mid-America Christian rallied as OCU went scoreless for two minutes. Wade broke the Stars' drought with a jumper in the lane for a 29-22 OCU lead at the 5:40 mark.
Charlie Shorter's bucket cut OCU's advantage to 31-27 with 3:57 left. The Stars responded with a 10-0 run started by Sam Ferguson's 3-pointer. Morton added a 3-point play and two layups during that stretch.
The Stars host the Drop N' Shop Basketball Camp at 8 a.m. Friday before returning to the court against USAO at 8 p.m. Dec. 1 in Chickasha, Okla.
Boxscore

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