The Lowdown: USAO @ No. 17 Mid-America Christian University
Time: Thursday (Jan. 29) at 8 p.m.
Location: Gaulke Activity Center, Oklahoma City, Okla.
Live Video:
Live Stats:
Rarefied Air: MACU head coach Willie Holley become one of only 18 head coaches and only the second active NAIA head coach (Dr. Dave Holmquist, Biola University) to reach the 800 win plateau by winning 86-52 at Southwestern Christian University (1/17/15). The milestone win also puts Holley in elite company such as Mike Krzyzewski, Bobby Knight, Jim Boeheim, Dean Smith, Jim Calhoun, Adolph Rupp and Eddie Sutton. The second winningest coach in NAIA history, Holley currently stands at 802 career wins.
The Dish on the Evangels: The No. 17-ranked Mid-America Christian University Evangels won their school-best (since joining the NAIA) sixth straight game with wins over Texas Wesleyan University and No. 8-ranked Oklahoma Baptist University last week. The Evangels escaped TWU 83-81 on a game-winning jumper from Semar Farris with 1.3 seconds left before routing OBU 92-75 to improve to 14-6 overall and pull out to a full two game lead in the Sooner Athletic Conference with a 7-1 league record.
Semar Farris leads the Evangels in scoring (17.3 ppg), assists (110), steals (47) and threes (44). Farris' assists and steals marks are both tops in the SAC and are fourth and fifth in the NAIA, respectively. Reggie Davis is second in scoring with 14.7 ppg and has a team-high 5.7 rebounds per game. Jarius Wilson (10.8 ppg) and Jerrick Massenburge (10.6 ppg) are also scoring in double-figures, while Chris Runnels has swatted a team-best 31 shots on the season.
The Dish on the Drovers: After starting the conference season with three straight losses, the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma Drovers have won three of their last five league games, including a 92-74 win over then No. 8-ranked Oklahoma Baptist University last Thursday (Jan. 22). The Drovers stand at 4-11 overall and 3-5 in the SAC.
Ed' Lexus Collier is pacing the Drovers in scoring with 16.9 ppg, followed by David Tucker Jr.'s 11.3 ppg. Jerry Coriolan is third in scoring with 11.3 ppg along with a team-high 5.8 rebounds per game. Markens Charles has recorded a team-best 75 assists on the season for the Drovers.
The Series: The Evangels are 8-6 against USAO since joining the NAIA after sweeping the season series last year. MACU is 6-1 vs. the Drovers at home, including winning the past five meetings inside the Gaulke Activity Center.
The Coaches:
Willie Holley is in his 42nd season as head coach at Mid-America Christian University and became just the 18th coach in college basketball history with 800 victories with an 86-52 victory at Southwestern Christian University (1/17/15). Holley now has an astounding 802 career wins, good for second all-time in the NAIA.
Entering the 2014-15 season, Holley has announced that this year will be his last of a legendary tenure.
Last season, he coached the Evangels to a tie for second place in the Sooner Athletic Conference with a 12-8 league record, their highest-finish as an NAIA school.
He also led MACU to its first-ever SAC Tournament victory last season and had the program within one spot of qualifying for their initial NAIA National Tournament berth.
After coming up just short for the NAIA Tournament, the Evangels qualified for their 23rd National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) National Tournament appearance.
The 2013-14 campaign also featured Holley coaching an NAIA All-America performer for the fourth straight season, as guard Semar Farris earned second-team NAIA All-America honors.
Holley has helped the Evangels become competitive in a short period of time in the Sooner Athletic Conference and broke through in 2012-13. Holley guided the Evangels to a 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 18 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 Hall is in his first season as head coach of USAO after spending one season as assistant coach at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. Before becoming an assistant coach, Hall served as the Director of Operations for three seasons at UMKC. Prior to arriving at UMKC, Hall was the head coach of Southwestern College (Kan.) for eight seasons and became the third winningest coach in school history.
Up Next: The Evangels will hit the road to face Southwestern Assemblies of God University Saturday evening (Jan. 31) at 5 p.m. in Waxahachie, Texas.
