Oklahoma City, Okla. -- The Mid-America Christian Evangels couldn't have picked a better night to pick up their first conference victory, as a combined 48 points from
Charlie Shorter and freshman
Reggie Davis propelled the Evangels to a stunning 73-67 win over the No. 5-ranked Rogers State Hillcats in Sooner Athletic Conference action Saturday evening (Jan. 7) at the Gaulke Activity Center.
As soon as the buzzer sounded, MACU fans stormed the court to celebrate the team's biggest home victory since joining the NAIA in 2007. It is also the Evangels first win over the Hillcats in that span.
The Evangels grabbed an early lead in the first half and maintained that advantage until an alley-oop dunk by Kenny Edwards gave the Hillcats a 56-55 lead with 8:02 left. It was the Hillcats' first lead since the 18:52 mark of the first half.
Davis quickly put the Evangels (6-7, 1-7 SAC) back on top with two free throws and a jumper for a three-point lead with 6:36 left.
After Edwards tied the score with a three-point play, Davis again struck for a layup and a trey for a 64-59 lead at the 4:20 mark.
The Hillcats (13-2, 6-2 SAC) wouldn't go away quietly as consecutive buckets from Meneptha Darden and Justynn Hammond cut the lead to one, but Davis again stabilized things with two free throws that made it 66-63.
The two teams then exchanged a pair of buckets, with Hammond and Larry Cox scoring for the Hillcats and Shorter and
Cameron Langster for the Evangels that gave the Evangels a 70-67 lead with 1:16 remaining.
From there,
Brandon Williams stepped to the line and hit one free throw that made it a four-point game and the Evangels sealed the deal with a turnover that led to a Shorter breakaway dunk with five seconds left.
The only time the Evangels trailed until the second half was on a pair of free throws by Hammond that gave the Hillcats an early 4-2 lead.
George Haynes then tied the score with a basket and Davis nailed a three to quickly erase the brief deficit.
It was 11-10 when Williams hit from beyond the arc to cap a 9-2 spurt that gave the Evangels a 20-12 lead with 10:06 left in the opening half.
The Evangels went to lead 35-30 at the break.
Shorter led all scorers with a game-high 30 points on 14-of-21 shooting from the field. Davis contributed a career-high 18 points, including crucial shots down the stretch to preserve the victory. Haynes had a team-high eight rebounds for the Evangels, with Williams and Langster each recording five assists.
Edwards led the Hillcats with 17 points, while Donald Williams added 11. Alex Ewings chipped in with 11 points and Brian Gibson led RSU with eight boards.
MACU shot a solid 48.3 percent (29-of-60) from the floor, while limiting the Hillcats to only 38.6 percent (22-of-57) along with forcing 26 turnovers.
The Evangels will try to stay on a winning note by continuing their six-game homestand against Wayland Baptist on Thursday night (Jan. 12). Tip-off is set for 8 p.m. inside the Gaulke Activity Center.
