OKLAHOMA CITY – No. 14 Mid-America Christian was able to get back on the winning track on Monday night inside the Gaulke Activity Center as the Evangels played stifling defense down the stretch and knocked down clutch free throws in the final 30 seconds to come away with a 67-63 victory over Southwestern Christian.
 

STAT LEADERS

• Terrance Jones – 14 PTS, 5-9 FG, 3-5 FT, 7 REB, 2 AST, 2 STL, 1 BLK
• Omar Boone – 14 PTS, 2-5 3 FG, 4-4 FT, 5 REB, 5 AST, 3 STL
• Toni Kumanovic – 12 PTS, 3-6 FG, 2-4 3FG,

 

GAME SUMMARY

• 1^st Half
  • Southwestern Christian (4-5, 3-3 Sooner Athletic Conference) jumped out to a fast start, knocking down a trio of three-pointers to hold a 9-2 lead after 1:58 of play.
  • An Omar Boone long range three from the top of the key with 17:40 to go ignited a 11-3 Mid-America Christian (5-2, 1-1 SAC) run of its own as the Evangels took their first lead on a pair of Toni Kumanovic free throws to make it 13-12 with 12:16 remaining.
  • SCU briefly regained the momentum by scoring seven of the next nine to grab a four-point edge at 19-15 with 9:55 left.
  • Terrance Jones was able to swing the momentum back into MACU's favor with a three-pointer from the left wing off an offensive rebound, jumpstarting a 15-point unanswered run for the Evangels that was capped off on a Jasiah Lewis three to set the score to 30-19 with 4:45 to go.
  • The Eagles responded with a 12-1 run over the next three minutes to tie the game at 31, but a Kumanovic three from the left wing with 1:15 remaining followed by a York Benjamin layup with 41 seconds left allowed MACU to hold a 34-33 edge at the halftime break.
• 2^nd Half
  • Derrick Magiya knocked down a three-pointer just nine seconds into the half to expand the MACU lead to four, but Southwestern Christian went on a 9-2 run to take a 42-39 advantage with 14:19 to go.
  • The two teams swapped leads over the next few minutes before the Evangels reclaimed the lead and expanded it to four at 50-46 with 11:20 remaining off a six unanswered run that featured four points from Kumanovic.
  • SCU and MACU continued to exchange the lead with the Eagles scoring seven straight followed by the Evangels netting six unanswered to hold a 56-53 with 8:58 left.
  • Back-to-back threes from SCU's Jordan Williams and Darrin Ryan pushed the Eagles back into the lead and maintained that advantage until the final minutes of the contest.
  • Trailing by three with the shot clock winding down, senior forward Dominick Ford buried a three from the left wing to tie the score at 63 with 1:44 on the clock.
  • The game held at a stalemate until Terrance Jones made a huge defensive play with 23 seconds left. Jones picked the pocket of SCU's Charles Dickson near the right wing and was fouled going on the fast break. Jones made both his bonus attempt free throws to give the Evangels the 65-63 edge.
  • Mid-America Christian came up with a big defensive stop on the ensuing possession and then Omar Boone sealed the game from the free throw line with nine seconds left to secure the 67-63 victory.

 

GAME NOTES

• Mid-America Christian won the defensive struggle, as the Evangels finished 23-for-59 (39 percent) from the field and 9-of-35 (25.7 percent) from three while knocking down 12-for-17 (70.6 percent) from the foul line. Despite struggling offensively, MACU was able to take advantage of its opportunities from the charity stripe in the second half, converting on 9-of-11 (81.8 percent) of its attempts.
• The Evangels limited Southwestern Christian to only 22-of-62 (35.5 percent) shooting for the contest, including 10-of-26 (38.5 percent) from behind the arc. MACU particularly frustrated SCU's leading scorer Charles Dickson, who finished with 16 points, but only shot 4-for-23 from the field and 3-for-11 from downtown.
• Mid-America Christian won the rebounding battle by a 40-36 margin while both teams equally turned the ball over 13 times in the contest.
• The MACU defense held the Eagles scoreless for the final 4:18 of the game.
• Terrance Jones and Omar Boone led four Evangels in double-figures with 14 points apiece. Jones finished 5-for-9 from the floor and 3-for-5 from the foul line to go with seven rebounds, two assists, two steals and a blocked shot. Boone tallied his 14 points on 4-of-12 shooting, but was 2-for-5 from three-point range and a perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line.
• Senior guard Toni Kumanovic tied a career-high 12 points off the MACU bench, knocking down 3-for-6 from the field, 2-for-4 from three and converted all four attempts from the foul line.
• Jasiah Lewis rounded out double-digit scorers with 11 points on 5-for-11 shooting.
• Dominick Ford led MACU on the glass with eight rebounds and despite struggling offensively with six points on 2-of-10 shooting, he came up with one of the most clutch shots in the contest.
• The Evangels won their first game of the new year and moved to 1-1 in Sooner Athletic Conference play. It was the Evangels' first victory in 70 days with their last win coming in a 103-79 affair at crosstown rival Randall on Nov. 16.

 

NEXT UP

• The Evangels will have a quick turnaround as MACU will head down to Chickasha, Oklahoma tomorrow night for a top 25 battle against No. 12 Science & Arts. Tip-off is slated for 7:45 p.m. inside the USAO Fieldhouse.