OKLAHOMA CITY – The MACU men's basketball team was unable to keep pace with Southwestern Assemblies of God as the Evangels saw its three-game win streak come to an end in a 72-61 defeat inside the Sheaffer Center on Saturday.
TOP PERFORMERS
- DaRaun Clark – 23 Points, 8-15 FG, 3-6 3FG, 4-4 FT, 6 Reb, 3 Steals
- Seth Hurd – 14 Points, 4-10 FG, 6-8 FT, 5 Reb, 2 Assists, 2 Blocks
- Eylan Goodwyn - 12 Points, 4-11 FG, 2-4 3FG, 2-3 FT, 5 Reb
GAME SUMMARY
- First Half
- It was a back-and-forth battle through the first four minutes as DaRaun Clark scored the first nine Mid-America Christian (6-9, 3-6 SAC) points, the last coming on a three-ball with 16:13 to go, but SAGU's Brooks Haddock also knocked down a three on the ensuing possession to tie it at 9-9 with 15:55 remaining.
- Both teams went through a three-minute scoring drought until Courtland Blake knocked down a jumper with 12:45 left to briefly put Southwestern Assemblies of God (10-6, 4-5 SAC) in-front, but a pair of Eylan Goodwyn free throws 30 seconds later locked it back up at 11-all.
- SAGU managed to take back a five-point lead over the next minute off a Blake three and a J.J. Boling jumper, but the MACU defense clamped down on the Lions over the next five minutes as MACU put together a 10-3 run as another Clark steal and fastbreak score gave the Evangels the 21-18 edge just under seven minutes to go.
- The Lions scored six of the next eight to briefly take back a 24-23 advantage on a Haddock fadeaway jumper with 4:31 left, but MACU quickly took it back when Goodwyn got open for a three at the top of the key at 26-24 at the 4:15 mark.
- Southwestern Assemblies scored the next five points to take back a 29-26 lead on an Alerick Hall jumpshot with 2:50 left. MACU managed to fight back to tie it twice on a Tarrence Gaines free throw and a Seth Hurd jumper on the Evangels' final possession, but SAGU took the momentum into the half as Trace Boling buried a long three from the left wing at the buzzer to give the Lions the 34-31 edge.
- Second Half
- Coming out of the locker room, Goodwyn immediately tied it up with a three-pointer from the left corner on the first possession. However, SAGU set the tone for the rest of the half by putting together 14-5 surge over the next five minutes as another Haddock three pushed the Lions' lead out to 48-39 with 14:28 to go.
- Being held to without a field goal for more than five minutes, MACU finally found a rhythm as a Trevonte Doolittle jumper at the 11:50 mark ignited an 8-2 MACU streak. Quentin Woodson closed it to a three-point game when he powered in a layup from the left side off a Doolittle in-bound pass, making it a 52-49 contest with 9:09 remaining.
- SAGU went scoreless for nearly five minutes, but a Noah Boling three with 6:46 to go allowed the Lions to score eight unanswered as a pair of Tyler Kinghorn free throws gave SAGU its first double-digit lead of the game 60-49 with just over five minutes left.
- After Hurd and Haddock traded buckets to keep it at an 11-point game, Mid-America Christian put together one last run by scoring five unanswered as a Gaines steal and fastbreak dunk with 2:45 left closed it to a two-possession game at 62-56 with 2:45 left.
- The Evangels were unable to climb any closer as SAGU broke out with a string of six straight out of a timeout and were able to hold off MACU over the final minutes to secure the 72-61 win.
GAME NOTES
- After shooting 44 percent or better the last three games, Mid-America Christian struggled offensively against the SAGU defense as the Evangels shot 21-for-55 (38.2 percent) from the field while the Lions went 27-of-64 (42.2 percent) from the field.
- Neither team was able to get things going from the perimeter as SAGU converted 7-for-22 (31.8 percent) of its attempts while MACU buried just 5-of-15 (33.3 percent) from range.
- Despite getting outshot in the contest, MACU was able to hold a slight edge from the free throw line as the Evangels finished 14-for-20 (70 percent) from the charity stripe while SAGU knocked down 11-of-19 (57.9 percent) from the stripe.
- The first half was a back-and-forth battle with seven lead changes and five ties that occurred in the first 20 minutes of play.
- Mid-America Christian gained the upper hand in transition outscoring SAGU 10-2 in fastbreak points.
- However, SAGU was able to win the rebounding battle with a 41-34 edge on the glass while also holding a slight 13-to-15 edge in the turnover battle.
- DaRaun Clark led the MACU scoring, putting in 18 points of his 23 points in the first half on 7-of-11 shooting, including 2-for-3 from three, but SAGU slowed Clark down in the second half to finish 8-for-15 from the field and 3-of-6 from three. Clark also finished with six rebounds and a team-high three steals.
- Seth Hurd poured 14 points, 11 of which came in the second half, to mark his fourth consecutive game of scoring in double-figures. Hurd finished 4-of-10 from the field and 6-for-8 from free throw line to go with five rebounds and two blocks on the defensive end of the floor.
- Eylan Goodwyn rounded out the double-figure scorers with 12 points on 4-of-11 shooting with two threes along with five rebounds.
- With the loss, Mid-America Christian had its three-game win streak snapped as well as suffered its first defeat in 2023.
UP NEXT
- Mid-America Christian will return home on Thursday, Jan. 12 to take on John Brown. The game will tip-off at 7:45 p.m. inside the Gaulke Activity Center.
