Hugh Scott

Eric Amandio reached double figures in scoring for the second time in three games Tuesday.

Men's Basketball 2/3/2021 3:54:00 PM

OCU at USAO men's basketball preview

Stars takes to road for second consecutive contest

7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 4
Drover Fieldhouse | Chickasha, Okla.

THE MATCHUP
• Oklahoma City University continues its packed schedule this week with a road contest against USAO
• The Stars began a stretch of four games in a week Tuesday. OCU's first three games took place in a five-day span
• USAO has prohibited spectator attendance from its home contests

ABOUT THE STARS
• OCU dropped an 81-80 decision to Southwestern Assemblies of God (Texas) on Tuesday in Waxahachie, Texas. Joshua Kashila's free throw with 4.8 seconds left provided the winning point as the Stars (1-3, 1-3 Sooner Athletic Conference) had their contest decided by one point for the third consecutive outing
• Elie Ghomsi, a 6-foot-7 junior from Bafoussam, Cameroon, topped OCU with 14 points. Ghomsi nabbed six rebounds and hit 7 of 8 shots from the field in his sixth start as a Star. Ghomsi supplies the Stars with 7.8 points and 7.0 rebounds a game with a 63.6 percent field-goal percentage
• Kealon Clayborne, a 6-3 senior from Cedar Hill, Texas, notched season highs with 13 points, four rebounds and two assists. Clayborne chips in 8.8 points and 2.3 rebounds per game
• OCU hauls in 30.5 defensive rebounds a contest as a team to rank 21st in the NAIA. Kori Guest's free-throw percentage (90.9 percent) ranks 13th in the NAIA. See how the Stars stack up with the other teams in the NAIA statistically here
• The Stars took the eighth spot in the preseason SAC coaches poll. OCU owns 13 SAC regular-season championships and 10 SAC Tournament titles. Oklahoma City has advanced to the NAIA Division I Championship Tournament 25 times all-time and has won six national championships in 1991, 1992, 1994, 1996, 2007 and 2008
• Oklahoma City leads the overall series 39-23 vs. USAO. The Drovers came out on top 76-70 on Feb. 22, 2020 in Oklahoma City in the most recent meeting. Rashaun Coleman provided OCU with 21 points, seven rebounds and two assists

ABOUT THE DROVERS
• USAO fell short to Texas Wesleyan 96-90 on Monday in Fort Worth, Texas. The Drovers (9-2, 4-2 SAC) saw their first action since Jan. 23
• Cameron Hines, a 5-10 senior, equaled his season highs with 26 points and six made free throws. He sank 4 of 10 from 3-point range. Hines averages 18.9 points, 3.3 assists and 1.27 steals per game
• The Drovers hold the eighth spot into the latest rankings
• USAO stood No. 5 in the preseason conference poll

MEET THE COACHES
Tim Kisner (first season with OCU)
• Kisner served as an assistant coach at John Brown (Ark.) the previous two seasons. John Brown went 51-16 (.762 winning percentage) with a program record-tying 28 victories last season, two national-tournament berths, two second-place finishes in the SAC and two appearances in the SAC Tournament title game. The Golden Eagles were 44-48 (.478) the two years prior to Kisner's arrival
• Guided Fresno Pacific to 14 victories as head coach in 2015-16, which was a five-game improvement over the previous season
• Started four years at point guard for Central Michigan from 1997-2001, earning spots on the program's all-time list for points, assists, 3-pointers and steals

Chris Francis (105-65, sixth season with USAO)
• Francis led the Drovers to the 2017 SAC Tournament championship and to three consecutive appearances in the NAIA Division I Championship Tournament. USAO reached the quarterfinal round in 2019 before losing to William Carey (Miss.)
• Prior to his time at USAO, Francis was an assistant at LSU-Shreveport for a year and helped lead the Pilots to the NAIA Fab Four, and he also made an appearance in the NAIA Tournament quarterfinals as a student assistant at his alma mater – Rogers State in 2012
• Was one of the first recruits at Rogers State, ending his career as the Hillcats' all-time leader in games played (123), steals (139), and minutes played (2,498)

ON THE AIR
• USAO will offer a live video broadcast as well as live stats

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Players Mentioned

#1 Kealon Clayborne: G; 6' 3"; Senior

#2 Rashaun Coleman: G; 6' 0"; Senior

#15 Elie Ghomsi: F; 6' 7"; Junior

#22 Kori Guest: F; 6' 6"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#1 Kealon Clayborne
: 6' 3"; Senior
: G

#2 Rashaun Coleman
: 6' 0"; Senior
: G

#15 Elie Ghomsi
: 6' 7"; Junior
: F

#22 Kori Guest
: 6' 6"; Junior
: F