OCU vs. Wayland Baptist men’s basketball preview

Stars aim for second straight trip to SAC Tournament finals

8 p.m. Friday, March 2
Bill George Arena in Siloam Springs, Ark.

THE MATCHUP
• Oklahoma City University looks to earn a trip to its second consecutive Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament Championship with a victory over Wayland Baptist (Texas) on Friday
• The winner of the OCU-Wayland Baptist semifinal will square off against the winner of the Texas Wesleyan-Southwestern Assemblies of God (Texas) semifinal in the tournament championship at 4 p.m. Saturday
• The Stars split the regular-season series against Wayland Baptist 1-1

ABOUT THE STARS
• Oklahoma City won a 66-63 nail-biter over Mid-America Christian in the SAC Tournament quarterfinals Tuesday at Abe Lemons Arena. The Stars (23-7) held a 20-point lead at the half and fought off a late rally from the Evangels to earn the win
• Samuel Williams, a 6-foot-8 senior from Reno, Nev., provided the Stars with 18 points and 10 rebounds on Tuesday – his eighth double-double of the season. Williams was recently named to the 2018 All-SAC third team
• Jonathan Ellis, a 5-foot-7 senior from Powder Springs, Ga., added 13 points, three assists and five steals against MACU. Ellis was named 2018 SAC co-defensive player of the year
• Among NAIA Division I, Oklahoma City ranks 10th in scoring offense per game (89.6), 16th in free throw percentage (73.8) and 18th in overall field goal percentage (48.4). To see how the Stars rank in other categories, click here
• The Stars improved to No. 9 in the latest NAIA Division I poll. Oklahoma City has made 23 NAIA Division I Tournament appearances and won six national championships in 1991, 1992, 1994, 1996, 2007 and 2008
• OCU was picked to finish second in the Sooner Athletic Conference according to the preseason coaches poll. OCU owns 13 SAC regular-season titles and nine SAC Tournament crowns. The Stars seized a share of the SAC regular-season men's basketball championship with a 77-74 victory over Texas Wesleyan on Sunday, their first league-title since 2007-08
• Oklahoma City owns a 44-17 all-time record against Wayland Baptist. OCU lost its last meeting against the Pioneers 80-78 on Feb. 10 in Plainview, Texas

ABOUT THE PIONEERS
• Wayland Baptist knocked off USAO in the SAC Tournament quarterfinals 86-73 Tuesday in Plainview, Texas. The Pioneers (22-8) finished the game shooting 65.3 percent from the field and 50.0 percent from beyond the arc
• Ruben Lopez, a 5-foot-6 senior from El Paso, Texas, led the Pioneers with 18 points and 11 assists on Tuesday. Lopez was named to the 2018 All-SAC second team and averages a team-high 14.8 points per game
• Among NAIA Division I, Wayland Baptist ranks sixth in both 3-point field goal percentage (40.2) and defensive field goal percentage (40.0), and 12th in defensive rebounds per game (29.2). To see how the Pioneers rank in other categories, click here
• SAC coaches slotted Wayland Baptist to take fifth in the conference

MEET THE COACHES
Vinay Patel (58-29, third season with OCU)
• Named 2018 John Hudson SAC Coach of the Year
• Patel collected his second HoopDirt.com coach of the week honor for Dec. 4-10
• Patel has guided two OCU all-Americans, including the Stars' first first-teamer since 2008; the 2017 Sooner Athletic Conference player of the year, the 2017 SAC co-defensive player of the year, a finalist for the Dark Horse Dunker competition, six all-conference performers and three academic all-SAC choices
• Before coming to OCU, he spent one season as Rogers State's assistant coach and aided the Hillcats to a 20-8 season led by the conference player of the year
• Patel spent nine years as assistant before serving as the head coach at West Texas A&M. During that time, West Texas went to the NCAA Division II Tournament five times, won the Lone Star Conference championship and took two Lone Star South Division titles

Ty Harrelson (61-33, third season with Wayland Baptist)
• Led Wayland Baptist to its second consecutive SAC Tournament championship in his first season as head coach
• Became an all-American in playing at Wayland from 2001-03 and holds multiple school records
• Played and coached professional basketball the past 12 years, most recently in Australia

ON THE AIR
• Tournament host John Brown (Ark.) will provide live video and live stats for all remaining Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament games. For more information, visit the SAC men's basketball tournament homepage

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Players Mentioned

#2 Jonathan Ellis: G; 5' 7"; Senior

#23 Samuel Williams: F; 6' 8"; Senior

Players Mentioned

#2 Jonathan Ellis
: 5' 7"; Senior
: G

#23 Samuel Williams
: 6' 8"; Senior
: F

Players Mentioned

#2 Jonathan Ellis

#23 Samuel Williams

Players Mentioned

#2 Jonathan Ellis

#23 Samuel Williams