USAO men’s basketball team (9-3, 4-2 SAC) hosted Wayland Baptist University (9-3, 4-2 SAC) as their first game of the new year. The Drovers came into the match-up with a four-game win streak. Similarly, to the women’s game, which played beforehand, the men’s teams found themselves in foul trouble early in the game.
After a moment of play, WBU’s Rodney Carson Jr. had a break away moment which he took advantage of with a slam dunk for the first points of the competition. The Pioneers quickly increased their lead, before Jayden Patcha, a junior guard, swished a three-pointer to steal the lead back by one. The back-and-forth playing style defined the game until the final minutes of the game. Halfway through the first half, Anthony Ray, a senior guard, had back-to-back-to-back slam dunks. By halftime, WBU lead with a score of 41-35.
At halftime, USAO sat 50% from the free throw line, as they made six of 12 shots. The Drovers had more opportunities at the charity stripe, as WBU only had five shots. At this point in the game, the Pioneers were outshooting the Drovers from behind the arc and from the field.
The Drovers came back from halftime with renewed energy, as they increased their shooting percentages across the board. The number of fouls increased rapidly as well, as WBU went from five in the first half to 20 in the second.
Ray made the first points of the half when he was fouled on a three-pointer, as he made all three of his free throws. USAO’s next points came from Jaden Harrell, a junior guard, as he sunk two more shots from the charity stripe. Scoring was slow, but at the 13-minute mark the Drovers finally caught up to WBU at 50-50. Manny Gatkek, a junior forward, bought back to the lead with a quick shot in the lane. For the rest of the game, the teams tied it up and stole the lead from each other until the final minute of play.
WBU sank a three-pointer to increase WBU’s lead to 78-73. The Pioneers added another three-pointer to their lead, followed by five free throws. The final score was 86-77.
The Drovers shot 25-65 (.385) from the field, 8-28 (.286) from behind the arc, and 19-31 (.613) from the charity stripe. In comparison, WBU shot 29-62 (.468) from the field, 9-26 (.346) from behind the arc, and 19-25 (.76) from the charity stripe.
Ray, one of the first men off the bench, was USAO’s leading scorer with 22 points, two rebounds, two blocks, and two steals. Reggie Quezada, a senior guard, had a slow start to the night but ended with 19 points, three rebounds, and three assists. A dozen points came from junior guard, Logan Dolan. Patcha contributed another ten points.
The Drovers will have a chance to redeem themselves Saturday, Jan. 6 at 3:45 p.m. against Oklahoma Panhandle State University (OPSU) in the Drover Fieldhouse.
Emily Loughridge is a third-year Communication major at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma.
