The Lowdown: Mid-America Christian University @ Arkansas Tech University
Time: 2 p.m.
Location: Russellville, Ark.
The Dish on the Evangels: Angelo Lewis' career-high 39 points weren't enough to keep the Mid-America Christian University Evangels from suffering their first setback of the season, a 97-95 OT defeat at Bacone College last night (Nov. 14).
The Warriors forced the extra period by wiping out a five-point deficit in the final 1:26 of regulation.
After two free throws by Luke Mergerson put MACU up 82-77, Creed Flowers scored the final five points of the second half for the Warriors, capping it by nailing a three with 18 seconds left that tied the score.
The Warriors quickly jumped on top by four in the extra session, but four points from Lewis and pair of free throws by Semar Farris gave the Evangels an 89-87 lead at the 3:10 mark.
Derrick Thomas then scored four to key a 6-1 spurt for a 93-90 edge, but Lewis drilled a three that tied the score again with 42 seconds remaining.
Following a split at the line by both Thomas and Geo Brewer, Lewis missed two at the charity stripe with a chance to tie and Thomas then converted both of his free-throw attempts to give the Warriors a two possession lead with only 11 seconds left.
Angelo Lewis now leads the Evangels in both points (22.8) and rebounds (6.8). Semar Farris is tied for second in scoring with 20 ppg and leads the team with 22 assists. Jarius Wilson is also scoring 20 ppg this season.
The Dish on the Wonder Boys: The NCAA II Arkansas Tech Wonderboys have split their first two outings of the season. ATU opened up the 2013-14 campaign with a 99-63 win over Lincoln before falling 96-89 at Southwest Baptist University.
Darrick Little leads five Wonder Boys in double-figure scoring with 15.5 ppg along with a team-best 7.5 rebounds. Bobby Hatchett leads ATU with 10 assists so far this season.
The Coaches:
Willie Holley is in his 41st season as head coach at Mid-America Christian University and his 772 career victories rank first in school history and second all-time in the NAIA.
Holley helped the Evangels become competitive in a short period of time in the Sooner Athletic Conference and broke through last season. Holley guided the Evangels to their highest-ever finish of third in the SAC with a 9-7 league record. MACU made their first appearance in the NAIA Top 25 in school history, coming in as high as tied for 23rd. The Evangels went on to capture their 20th NCCAA Central Regional Championship and finished fifth at the NCCAA National Tournament.
The 2012-13 season also featured guard Charlie Shorter, who was named SAC Player of the Year, NCCAA National Player of the Year and was a first-team NAIA All-America selection. It's the third straight season Holley has coached an NAIA All-American, as Shorter and Brandon Williams were Honorable-Mention selections in 2011-12 and 2010-11, respectively.
Holley's coaching style is to establish in his players a "no quit" attitude. This style led to an improbable NCCAA National Championship in 2007. The title was the fourth of Holley's illustrious career as he previously won the championship in 1998, 2003, and 2004. This year the plan is to take that same attitude and improve on last season's effort.
During his time at Mid-America, Holley has become a fixture in the athletic program, as he served as Athletic Director from 1973-2012. In 1997, Holley was inducted into the NCCAA Hall of Fame, and he has been named the NCCAA Division II Coach of the Year four times - 1985, 1995, 2000 and 2004. Holley has also coached 17 All- Americans and won numerous conference and regional championships.
Holley earned his bachelor's degree in business administration from University of Louisiana - Monroe in 1970. He and his wife, Janet, have three daughters: Angela, Jessica and Stacey.
Doug Karleskint is in his third season at the helm of Arkansas Tech University and has led the Wonder Boys to the NCAA Tournament in both of his seasons as head coach, including a regional final berth in the 2011-12 campaign. Karleskint served one season as an assistant coach at ATU before becoming head coach. Prior to arriving at ATU, Karleskint was an assistant for two seasons at NCAA I Stephen F. Austin University.
Up Next: The Evangels will play another exhibition at an NCAA II school, this time at Dallas Baptist University on Saturday night (Nov. 23) at 7 p.m. in Ft. Worth, Texas.
