OKLAHOMA CITY – MACU Women's Basketball overcame a four-point halftime deficit inspired by a commanding second half and a season-high field goal and 3-pt percentage to defeat College of the Ozarks 82-76 on Saturday afternoon inside the Gaulke Activity Center.  
 
SCORE

• Mid-America Christian 82, College of the Ozarks 76
  • (RV) Mid-America Christian: (17-4, 12-3 SAC)
  • College of the Ozarks: (13-8, 10-5 SAC)

TOP PERFORMERS

• Mia Smith: 15 Points, 5-6 FG, 2-2 3FG, 5 Reb, 4 Ast
• Taliah Lee: 14 Points, 6-12 FG, 5 Reb, 3 Ast, 3 Stl, 2 Blk
• Talayah Thomas: 12 Points, 4-6 FG, 6 Ast, 3 Stl, 3 Reb
• Sincere Roberts: 11 Points, 4-6 FG, 7 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 Stl, 1 Blk
• Caitlynn Jordan: 11 Points, 3-7 3FG, 6 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 Blk
• Monique Carter: 11 Points, 4-8 FG, 2-5 3FG, 3 Stl, 2 Ast, 2 Reb

GAME SUMMARY

• First Quarter
  • MACU raced out of the blocks to jump to an 8-0 lead just two minutes into the contest off the back of a two threes coming from Caitlynn Jordan and Talayah Thomas. Jordan cashed in from deep a few minutes later to stop a quick Bobcats' run, giving the Evangels a 16-10 lead at the first quarter media timeout.
  • College of the Ozarks continued to get out in transition as Evangel turnovers racked up resulting in easy points for the Bobcats. COFO ended the first quarter with six straight points to knot up the opening 10 minutes at 22.
• Second Quarter
  • Aniya Smith sparked the offense on the first possession converting for three in the corner. However, the COFO offense went red hot from range with three straight triples to lead 35-28 four minutes into the quarter.
  • Monique Carter ended the Bobcats' scoring run with a three of her own out of the timeout. Thomas responded with a midrange jumper, followed by an immediate impact from Allie Harris who splashed home a three from the left wing as MACU snatched the lead right back at 36-35, with two minutes left.
  • The Bobcats continued to rally back and ended the quarter on a 7-2 run to lead 42-38, at the halftime break.
• Third Quarter
  • Both offenses opened the second half sluggish as points became hard to come by in the opening four minutes. Mia Smith connected from range to pull MACU within one at 46-45.
  • The Bobcats held a narrow lead that extended up to six before Jordan and Carter cashed in consecutive triples to square us right back up at 52.
  • Jordan added two more from the line in the final minute of the quarter as MACU held a slight 58-55 advantage going into the final quarter.
• Fourth Quarter
  • The Evangels stayed aggressive off the dribble earning points from the free throw line. However, the Bobcats remained neck and neck offensively trailing just three, 65-62, at the fourth quarter media timeout.
  • MACU took over out of the timeout with an 8-0 run in a minute and a half, blowing the lead up to 11. Sincere Roberts and Mia Smith both cashed in three points during the stretch.
  • COFO continued to show fightback, but Roberts came up big on the defensive end coming up with a few steals that Mia Smith turned to points on the other side. MACU closed it out on the line by a final score of 82-76.

 
GAME NOTES

• MACU shot season-highs both from the field 53.8% (28-52), and 3-pt line at 54.2% (13-24), while finishing 13-17 (76.5%) from the free throw line. The Bobcats shot 26-62 (41.9%) from the field, 7-20 (35%) from behind the arc, and 17-21 (81.0%) from the charity stripe.
• For the first time this season, Mid-America Christian finished with six players in double-digit scoring. Mia Smith led the way off the bench with 15 points knocking down both three pointers attempted. Taliah Lee tallied 14 points off 6-12 from the field. Talayah Thomas had an efficient 4-6 night good for 12 points. While Caitlynn Jordan, Sincere Roberts, and Monique Carter all chipped in 11.
• Sincere Roberts had a team-high seven rebounds, followed by Caitlynn Jordan snagging six boards. The Evangels finished with 18 team assists led by six from Talayah Thomas and four from Mia Smith.
• MACU forced 16 turnovers tallying 10 steals and five blocks. Talayah Thomas, Taliah Lee, and Monique Carter stripped away three steals, while the conference's leading blocker Taliah Lee had two blocks.
• Mid-America Christian improves to 12-3 in Sooner Athletic Conference play, as the Evangels sit joint second with Nelson, remaining just one game back of the SAC leaders Langston.   
• MACU defeated COFO for just the second time, improving the Evangels all-time record against the Bobcats to 2-6 and splitting the regular season series.     

UP NEXT

• Mid-America Christian stays at home for its third game in five days to host crosstown rivals Southwestern Christian on Monday night tipping off at 5 p.m. inside the Gaulke Activity Center.