Oklahoma City, Okla. -- On a night when the Oklahoma City Thunder got a much-needed victory to even their playoff series with the Memphis Grizzlies at 1-1, Mid-America Christian Women's Basketball head coach
Roman Owen was also a big winner after draining a half-court shot that earned him 20k before a raucous crowd at OKC arena Tuesday night (May 3).
Owen was chosen randomly coming into the game to take part in a shooting contest in between the third and fourth quarter.
The contest pitted Owen against one other person in a free-throw competition to see who could make the most from the charity stripe in 30 seconds.
The caveat was they weren't shooting regular basketballs, but rubber balls that was hard to have good touch on the rim. Owen estimated he made three in the time allotted, which proved to be enough to earn the chance to attempt the $20,000 half-court shot.
Owen then stepped up and perfectly launched the half-court shot firmly into the net.
"My main thought was don't leave it short, give it a chance," Owen said. "After I released, I realized it wasn't going to be short and it was going in."
After swishing the shot, euphoria followed as Owen was swarmed on the court and OKC Thunder guard Nate Robinson motioned him over to congratulate him.
"It's all been great and has been free publicity for MACU," Owen said with a smile.
Owen's shot ignited the sell-out crowd and also seemed to have a carry over effect for the Thunder, who then opened the fourth quarter on a 21-8 run that included three treys from Eric Maynor to take a commanding 97-76 lead on the way to a 111-102 victory.
Although not surrounded with as much "buzz" as his half-court shot, Owen has enjoyed success on the hardwood leading the MACU Lady Evangels.
In his first season at the helm, Owen guided the Lady Evangels to an National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) Central Regional championship and a fifth-place finish at the NCCAA National Tournament this past season.
He also led the Lady Evangels to eight victories in the challenging Sooner Athletic Conference, their most since joining the NAIA in the 2007-08 season.
