Plainview, Texas – The Wayland Baptist University Pioneers used a second-half surge to defeat the Mid-America Christian University Evangels 75-59 in a Sooner Athletic Conference matchup tonight (Feb. 9) in Plainview, Texas.

The run occurred at the 7:41 mark after Devonse Reed hit a jumper to bring the Evangels into a 45-45 tie.

Ruben Lopez ignited the burst with two threes that put the Pioneers ahead for good.

It ended up being a 28-9 push that Lopez capped with two free throws that had WBU up 73-54 with just 1:37 remaining.

The Evangels twice trailed by seven in the opening half before rallying to tie the score on a Malcolm Mann three with 56 seconds left.

Maurice Redmond then answered with a trey of his own to give the Pioneers a 27-24 lead at the break.

MACU briefly led in the second half when Devante Moore scored five points and hit a three to spark a 9-0 spurt that put the Evangels up 39-37, their first edge since the 11:13 mark of the first half.

Mann led the Evangels (14-11, 5-8 SAC) with 13 points and hit three of his four three-point attempts.

Trey Slate had 10 points and Ex'Zavia Seaton pulled down a team-high eight rebounds and led the Evangels with four assists. Reed scored nine points with seven boards.

Russell Harrison paced the Pioneers (15-10, 7-6 SAC) with 18 points and Redmond scored 14.

Lopez had 12 points and a game-high five assists for the Pioneers.

The Evangels will next play at John Brown University Saturday evening (Feb. 11) at 5 pm in Siloam Springs, Ark.