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Oklahoma City University Athletics

Oklahoma City University
Home Of Champions|73 National Championships
Chris Williams
Chris Williams provided OCU with 26 points Thursday.
71
USAO USAO 19-9, 13-8
74
Winner Oklahoma City OCU 18-9, 13-8
USAO USAO
19-9, 13-8
71
Final
74
Oklahoma City OCU
18-9, 13-8
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
USAO USAO 26 45 71
Oklahoma City OCU 37 37 74

Next Game:

at Mid-America Christian

2/23/2019 | 4 p.m.

Next Game

Full Schedule
Feb. 23 (Sat) / 4 p.m.
at Mid-America Christian
History

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Stars prevail 74-71 over USAO

OCU fends off USAO after Drovers tie score late

OKLAHOMA CITY – Chris Williams lifted Oklahoma City University to a 74-71 win over USAO by hitting a reverse layup with 20 seconds left Thursday night at Abe Lemons Arena.
Mark Howell sank a free throw with five seconds left, then poked the ball away from USAO to prevent a tying 3-pointer. The Stars, ranked 18th in NAIA Division I men's basketball, went to 18-9, 13-8 in the Sooner Athletic Conference.
OCU preserved the lead as Joe Clarke blocked a shot, and Eric McCollum stole the ball in the final 10 seconds of the game. The Stars avenged a 70-55 loss to USAO on Jan. 5 in Chickasha, Okla.
"We're not done yet," OCU coach Vinay Patel said. "This is not hopefully our last home game. I'm really proud of us hanging in there. We got up 19 and let them back in it. It was a good job of them pressing, and we started playing not to lose instead of playing to win."
The Drovers (19-9, 13-8 SAC) tied the game 71-71 with 40 seconds left on Clay Long's free throws. Long also had a 3-point play as USAO stormed back into the game with a 13-0 run.
Elijah Christman laid in a basket to put Oklahoma City ahead 67-48 at the 6:52 mark. Trae Bryant hit a jumper in the lane for a 71-58 OCU advantage with just over three minutes left.
"Give credit because we had some big-time guys step up," Patel said. "Eric McCollum, best game he's played in a while defensively and on the glass. How big were his offensive rebounds? He owned the glass down the stretch. He had four steals and a big one at the very end. I'm really proud of these guys for sticking with it and figuring out how to get the job done today."
Williams, a senior from Denver, produced 26 points and four rebounds while shooting 9-for-16 from the field and 5-for-11 from 3-point range. Christman, a senior from Justin, Texas, pitched in 15 points.
McCollum, a senior from Newburgh, N.Y., supplied OCU with eight points, 13 rebounds and four steals with 6-for-6 shooting from the foul line, while Bryant, a junior from Wilmington, N.C., added eight points.
Williams sank three treys and a free throw to build a 12-3 OCU advantage early on.
The Stars complete the regular season 4 p.m. Saturday at Mid-America Christian inside the Gaulke Activity Center in Oklahoma City.




 
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Players Mentioned

Elijah Christman

#10 Elijah Christman

F
6' 5"
Senior
Mark Howell

#4 Mark Howell

G
5' 11"
Senior
Eric McCollum

#34 Eric McCollum

C
6' 9"
Senior
Chris Williams

#2 Chris Williams

G
6' 2"
Senior
Joe Clarke

#11 Joe Clarke

G
6' 3"
Senior
Trae Bryant

#3 Trae Bryant

G
6' 1"
Senior

Players Mentioned

Elijah Christman

#10 Elijah Christman

6' 5"
Senior
F
Mark Howell

#4 Mark Howell

5' 11"
Senior
G
Eric McCollum

#34 Eric McCollum

6' 9"
Senior
C
Chris Williams

#2 Chris Williams

6' 2"
Senior
G
Joe Clarke

#11 Joe Clarke

6' 3"
Senior
G
Trae Bryant

#3 Trae Bryant

6' 1"
Senior
G