BETHANY, Okla.—Without their two leading scorers, Southern Nazarene made a statement on Saturday afternoon with a 71-67 win over nationally ranked No. 25 Dallas Baptist. As have their last two wins, it certainly did not come without drama as Dallas Baptist turned an 18 point deficit into just a 3 point deficit, but the Storm were able to fend them off for the win.
The Crimson Storm (4-1, 0-0 GAC) came out firing on all cylinders in the first half. They used a gigantic 18-2 run midway through the first half to build an 18 point lead over the Patriots (3-2, 0-0 LSC). They splashed six shots from the outside, including three from Manny Dixon, on their way to a 35-24 halftime lead.
Putting the Patriots away certainly was not an easy task, though. Dallas Baptist showed their prowess in the second half and cut the lead down to just three points, but ultimately ran out of time. They knocked down some big shots from deep in the second half, including three in the final minute and a half of the game, but the Storm were able to close the game out with free throws from Jalen Lynn, and splits from Eain Mowat and Manny Dixon.
The ball movement is what really helped lead the Crimson Storm to a victory. They amassed an incredible 19 assists on 24 made shots, showing unselfishness all afternoon long. Xavier Bryant was the leader in that category with 6 in the game. He is now up to over 5.5 assists per game through the first five games of the season. He would also add 16 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 steals, once again filling up the stat sheet in a number of areas.
Manny Dixon led all scorers for the second consecutive game, totaling a season-high 18 on three made shots from the outside. He also added 8 rebounds and 3 assists.
Mo Wilson II notched his first double-double since Jan. 14, when he notched 22 points and 16 rebounds. On Saturday afternoon, Wilson poured in 13 points to go along with his game-high 12 boards.
Southern Nazarene will close out their four-game home stand and begin Great American Conference play next time out as the Storm host East Central next Thursday, December 2. A very competitive series between SNU and ECU sees the Storm hold a slight 11-10 advantage all-time. The teams split last season's four matchups with the away team winning each game. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. following the women's game.
