Shooting Struggles Lead to Defeat Against No. 23 Wayland Baptist

CHICKASHA, Okla. – Thursday night, the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma (9-3, 4-2 SAC) had their four-game win-streak snapped with an 86-77 loss against No. 23 ranked Wayland Baptist University (9-3, 4-2 SAC). With the loss, the Drovers are now 18-21 against the Pioneers all-time, dating back to January of 2007. 

The Drovers got off to a bit of a slow start and trailed 7-2 after three minutes of action, but they turned things around with an 8-2 run to claim a 10-9 advantage with less than 14 minutes left in the first half. However, the Pioneers regained the momentum and owned a 32-22 lead with 6:33 to play. The Drovers managed to trim their deficit to six at halftime, and WBU took a 41-35 lead into the break.

Following halftime, both teams traded buckets for the opening five minutes of the second half and thew Pioneers held a 49-45 lead. USAO began to catch fire and took a 52-50 lead with 13 minutes to go in regulation. The lead was exchanged multiple times during the next eight minutes of action, but WBU was able to cling to a 71-70 lead with 4:52 remaining in regulation. The Pioneers closed the game very strong and outscored the Drovers 11-4 in the final 2:02 of the contest.

While both teams dealt with rust from some time off over the winter break, the Drovers beat themselves in several key areas; mainly shooting from the free-throw line, and poor rebounding.

USAO struggled on the offensive end of the court and finished the game shooting 25-65 (.385) from the field, 8-28 (.286) from beyond the arc, and only 19-31 (.613) from the free-throw line. In comparison, Wayland Baptist shot 29-62 (.468) from the field, 9-26 (.346) from deep, and 19-25 (.760) from the charity stripe. 

The Pioneers outrebounded the Drovers by a margin of 46-35. USAO forced WBU into committing 13 turnovers, while fumbling the ball eight times themselves. The Drovers were whistled for 20 fouls, and the Pioneers were called for 23 infractions.

Four different Drovers scored in double figures, led by Anthony Ray's impressive performance, concluding with 22 points on 7-14 shooting from the field. Ray also contributed two steals and two blocks on defense. 

Reggie Quezada closed with 19 points and three assists, followed by Logan Dolan with 12 points and a pair of steals. Jayden Patcha finished a rebound shy of a double-double, as he concluded with 10 points and nine rebounds in 23 minutes off the bench. 

Manny Gatkek scored four points and hauled in four rebounds. Jaden Harrell dished out a game-high of five assists, in addition to three points and four rebounds. Rory Pantophlet also added three points and four boards. Tre Ellis and Niieihii BlackBear each finished with two points.  

WHAT'S NEXT?

The Drovers will return to action on Saturday (Jan. 6) as they host Oklahoma Panhandle State University. The women are scheduled to tip-off at 2:00 PM, followed by the men's game at 3:45 PM inside Drover Fieldhouse.

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