SHAWNEE, Okla. - It was ugly, it was tough, it was gritty, it was hostile, it was loud.
And it was everything you could've asked for from two rivals.
Senior
Zach Johnson swiped the ball away from a driving Antonio Wade in the waning seconds as No. 25 Southern Nazarene got a huge victory over rival and first place Oklahoma Baptist to preserve a 58-57 victory at the Noble Complex on Thursday evening.
The win moves SNU to 14-3 overall and 7-2 in the GAC and knocks the Bison out of first place, moving them even with SNU at 7-2.
SNU played a masterful game defensively, holding the top team in the GAC in scoring to 20 of 51 (39%) from the field, 7 of 21 (33%) from behind the arc, and 10 of 18 (56%) from the free throw line. The Crimson Storm needed every bit of it as they struggled from the field, shooting 21 of 58 (36%) from the field, 2 of 17 (12%) from deep, and 14 of 24 (58%) from the line.
OBU outrebounded SNU 41-38, but the Crimson Storm forced 14 turnovers while only giving it away seven times.
The Crimson Storm got out to a 5-0 lead off a lay in from
Noah Starkey and a 3-pointer from
Jhonathan Dunn and pushed that lead to 16-7 in the first eight minutes as SNU used a tenacious defense paired with great motion on the offensive end, building an early advantage and silencing the raucous crowd.
OBU responded with a 9-0 run to even things up at 16 a piece and it would be a heavyweight fight on the defensive end the rest of the half as the two squads traded blow-for-blow with neither team holding a lead greater than three. OBU took a 25-24 lead with 1:50 to play, but Dunn got a bucket before the break and gave the Crimson Storm a 26-25 lead at half.
In the second half,
Micah Speight got going along with
Quaylon Newton as the Crimson Storm built a 37-27 lead in the first five minutes; again, using tremendous defense paired with timely shots. However, OBU responded again and this time went on a 13-2 run to storm back and take a 40-39 lead midway through the second half.
Dunn had a ferocious slam to take the lead back and Starkey went to work in the paint as SNU got their lead back out to eight. But SNU never could quite close out the home team as it turned back into a see-saw battle.
Down 52-44, OBU went on a 13-3 run capped off by a Brantly Thompson 3-pointer to take a 57-55 lead with 1:23 to play.
SNU got a free throw from Starkey to cut it to one and a stop on the other end to give the Crimson Storm possession with under a minute to play. Dunn took a handoff and buried a mid-range jumper from the elbow with 26 seconds to play to put the Crimson Storm ahead 58-57.
After a stop and missed free throws with five seconds to play, Wade, the leading scorer for OBU made his break for the win and as he rose, Johnson swiped it from him, jarring the ball lose as Dunn came and scooped it up as the clock expired to give SNU the thrilling win.
Dunn finished with 16 points, three rebounds, three steals, and one block while Starkey added 14 points and 11 rebounds. Speight scored 10 while Newton had seven points and nine rebounds. Johnson went for four points, five rebounds, and a big steal while holding OBU's leading scorer to only 11 points. The Crimson Storm were shorthanded in this contest and got key minutes from
Chris Stephens,
Ashton Charles, and
Brady Mulkey.
Thompson led teh way with 15 points while Davion Turner had 14. Wade finished with 11 while Dishon Lowery had six points and 15 rebounds.
SNU will conclude a four game road stand, including seven of their last 10 away from home, against East Central on Saturday afternoon at 3 p.m. The two squads met on December 1st as SNU thrashed the Tigers, 91-66 in the Sawyer Center.
