Men's Basketball 1/25/2012 3:19:00 PM

OCU vs. Oklahoma Christian men's basketball preview

Kaleb Smith a scored a season-high seven points in 11 minutes of action against USAO on Saturday.

8 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 26
Abe Lemons Arena

THE MATCHUP: Oklahoma City University looks to avoid a third straight loss as they host Sooner Athletic Conference rival Oklahoma Christian in the second installment of the Backyard Brawl.
Tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for students, while OCU students, faculty and staff are allowed into all regular-season OCU athletics events for free with their ID.

ABOUT THE STARS: The Stars mounted a late charge Saturday against USAO but came up short 77-69 at Abe Lemons Arena. The loss moves OCU to 9-7 on the season and 6-6 in SAC play.
Point guard Charlton Jones led the Stars with a career high 25 points in 40 minutes of action. The junior from Katy, Texas, shot 50 percent from the field and hit a career-high four 3-pointers against USAO. Jones averages 12.6 points per contest and leads OCU in assists with 5.7 a game.
Senior Orlan Jackman posted a double-double with 17 points and ten rebounds against USAO. The 6-foot-6 forward leads the Stars in scoring and rebounding with 13.6 points and 9.0 rebounds per game. Jackman has posted four double-doubles in his last four outings.
Shane Rogers, of Flower Mound, Texas, added nine points and seven rebounds against USAO. The senior guard shot 50 percent from the field and played 39 minutes on the night. Rogers averages 7.4 points per game.
Jones' 5.6 assists per game have him ranked 11th in NAIA Division I in assists per game. Jackman is ranked 14th in the nation in offensive rebounds per game, pulling down 3.6 per outing. To see how the Stars stack up statistically with the rest of NAIA Division I, click here.
OCU was unranked in the latest NAIA Division I rankings, and currently sit in seventh place in the SAC standings. The Stars were picked to finish seventh in conference in the preseason.
The Stars hold a 47-19 all-time record against Oklahoma Christian. The Eagles nipped OCU 66-62 in their last meeting on Dec. 31 at the Eagles Nest.

ABOUT THE EAGLES: The Eagles narrowly fell to No. 3 Oklahoma Baptist 64-63 on Jan. 21 at the Noble Complex in Shawnee, Okla. Oklahoma Christian moved to 12-7 overall and 6-6 in SAC play.
Sophomore Kendre Talley led the Eagles with 18 points and three steals against Oklahoma Baptist. Talley averages 10.8 points, 5.1 assists per game and is ranked 14th in the nation in total steals with 53.
Center Will Reinke added 15 points in the 64-63 loss. Reinke leads the team in scoring with16.5 points per game and is ranked 11th in the nation in total blocks with 35.
Junior Brandon Troutman pitched in with 12 points on 4-for-5 shooting from behind the 3-point line. Troutman shoots 45 percent from 3-point range and has scored in double figures eight times this season.
Oklahoma Christian is ranked fourth in defensive field goal percentage, holding opponents to 38 percent from the floor, and sixth in defensive rebounds per game, grabbing 30.1 defensive boards per contest. The Eagles currently sit in sixth place in the SAC standings and were picked to finish fourth in the preseason.

ABOUT THE COACHES: Dionne Phelps enters his first season as a head coach with OCU. Phelps took over the Stars after serving as assistant coach for Oklahoma. Phelps has been a part of four conference title teams as well as three NCAA Tournament teams during his 22-year coaching career. Phelps played for Texas Lutheran, eventually joining the Bulldog Athletic Hall of Fame.
Dan Hays has guided Oklahoma Christian to a 603-329 record in his 29th season as the Eagles' head coach. Hays, an NAIA hall of Famer, has led OC to six conference championships and eight national-tournament appearances. His overall coaching record stands at 741-437.

QUOTABLE: “Orlan is becoming the player that when I first saw him I thought he could be. He's not all the way there yet, he knows that he still has a way to go, but that is a good thing.” Phelps on Orlan Jackman

FOLLOW THE STARS: Fans can keep up on the latest on OCU athletics through several ways.
Become a fan of the Oklahoma City University Stars on Facebook by going to www.facebook.com/ocustars.
Become a follower of the OCU Stars on Twitter at www.twitter.com/ocustars.
Check out video of the Stars in action at www.youtube.com/ocustars.
Be sure to catch the OCU Athletics Update video program weekly on ocusports.com, the OCU YouTube Channel or on OCU Athletics' Facebook page. Click here to see the latest edition or see our video channel in the upper right-hand corner of our home page.
Know when the game is happening by calling the OCU athletics hotline at (405) 208-5400. Get conference scores and highlights by calling the SAC Hotline at (405) 878-2110.

ON THE AIR: OCU athletics has partnered with Stretch Internet to provide live and on-demand audio, stats and video of the Stars' games. Greg Merick and Eric Rodgers will call the action. To access the live audio, stats or video for the game, visit OCU's Stretch portal by clicking here.
The live audio and stats will be provided free of charge, while the cost to see the video will be $6.95. A men's basketball season pass that allows you to see all the Stars' 2011-12 home games costs $29.95, while an 2011-12 all-sports pass costs $79.95.

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