DALLAS, TEXAS – The Oklahoma City men's basketball team took the Trailblazers to overtime but fell shy of the win as UNT-Dallas held on with an 85-72 victory over OCU handing the Stars their third straight loss.  

Oklahoma City (3-10, 1-6) got off to a quick start as Parker Jones and Jack McWilliams delivered a pair of layups along with a 1-for-2 trip from the foul line for Avery Jackson to put the Stars up 5-0.  

UNT-Dallas (3-7, 2-5) refused to stay down long as the Trailblazers came back with a 10-0 run and remained in the lead until OCU freshman Clayton Jewell tied the game 16 on a jump shot with 10:02 remaining.  

Oklahoma City put together a 9-0 run as senior Brandon Jackson knocked down his first of many three-pointers on the day. The two squads stayed close throughout the first half as the score was 27-27 with 1:53 to go. 

UNT-Dallas caught fire in the final two minutes as the Trailblazers closed out the first half on an 8-0 run as back-to-back threes gave them all the momentum heading into the halftime break with a 35-27 lead.  

OCU closed in on the lead right out of the gate with back-to-back threes by Avery Jackson and Brandon Jackson to shrink the Trailblazer lead to just four.  

UNT-Dallas continued to have an answer every time OCU came close to taking the lead. Jewell cashed in on another jumper bringing it to within two, the closest it had been up to this point in the half with just over five minutes to go.  

With just over a minute to play Brandon Jackson delivered a three-point play cutting the deficit to just one point. Having to foul, UNT-Dallas sunk its free throws to take a three-point lead giving one last possession to the Stars.  

With time ticking down freshman Yorgio Golesis found his clutch gene as he pulled up from the left wing to knock down the game-tying three which sent the contest into overtime.  

In overtime, it was all UNT-Dallas as the Trailblazers outscored the Stars 22-9 and finished the game on a 13-3 run. The top two players for UNT-Dallas Vernon Johnson and Tariq Aman combined for 16 points in the five minute period to help the Trailblazers take down OCU 85-72.

Oklahoma City was led all day long by senior Brandon Jackson who scored a season-high 28 points on a season-high five made three-pointers while also picking up six rebounds and two blocks. 

Freshman Clayton Jewell joined Jackson as the Stars only other player to score in double-figures with 11 points and nine rebounds while shooting 5-11 from the field.  

Junior guard Sam Taulapiu set a career-high of seven assists while coming off the bench as Avery Jackson set a season-high of eight rebounds.  

Oklahoma City suffered its first-ever loss to UNT-Dallas in the five-game series dating back to 2021.  

The Stars return home on Thursday, Jan. 11 to take on rival MId-America Christian at 7:45 PM inside Abe Lemons Arena.