BETHANY, Okla.—The wins are piling up for the Southern Nazarene University Men's Basketball team as the Crimson Storm earned an eighth straight victory after fending off Henderson State 67-61 on Thursday night inside the Sawyer Center.
It had to feel good returning home for the Crimson Storm (12-5, 7-4 GAC) who are coming off five straight road games, including a stretch of four games in seven days in Arkansas. The Storm gained plenty of momentum on the trip, though, winning all four games, and kept that momentum going by extending their overall winning streak to eight games.
The game also marked the second time in four days that SNU matched up with Henderson State (11-7, 7-5 GAC). The two squads met on Monday in Arkadelphia in a remake of the New Year's Day postponement. Just as they did on Monday, the Storm built a double-digit lead in the first half and would have to fight to fend off a pesky Henderson State squad in the second half for a six-point win.
It was not the best shooting night for the Storm who were held to 21-of-56 (37.5%) from the floor. Despite that fact, the team found other ways to be successful. They moved the ball extremely well all night, piling up 15 assists on those 21 made baskets. The team also doubled Henderson up at the free throw line as they connected on 17-of-22 (77.3%) of their chances at the stripe, while Henderson attempted just 11 free throws, making six of them (54.5%).
The first three minutes of the game did not quite go as SNU hoped as the Reddies jumped out to a quick 8-0 lead. The Storm showed their resilience, though, battling back with a 13-2 run to regain the lead. From there they continued to build separation and eventually opened up a 15 point lead before setting for a 39-28 halftime advantage.
Having already overcome seven halftime deficits this season, Henderson showed their grit in the second half. They trimmed SNU's lead to just three points at the eight minute mark. The Storm responded with an 11-2 run to regain a 12 point lead that seemed to put the game away, but again Henderson showed fight and trimmed SNU's lead back to five points with just over a minute to play. The Storm came through at the charity stripe over the final minute to close out the game, though, converting on 7-of-10 chances in the final minute of the game.
Tyler McGhie, Manny Dixon, and Mo Wilson II each reached double figures in the game, scoring 16, 15, and 14, respectively. Wilson would also snag six boards and send two shots back with a pair of blocks.
After dealing with a limited roster early in the season, SNU has dug themselves all the way out of the bottom of the GAC and have put themselves right in the thick of the race. The Storm now sit in third in the conference, one game behind Southeastern and a game and a half behind Oklahoma Baptist. The Storm will match up with both of those teams next week.
Prior to those big matchups next week, SNU hosts two more Arkansas schools in Ouachita Baptist and Arkansas Tech. They will meet Ouachita on Saturday before hosting Arkansas Tech on Monday in remake of the Jan. 6 postponement. The Storm earned a 69-63 win over Ouachita back on Jan. 18 and have won 9 of the last 10 games overall against the Tigers. Tipoff is set for 3:00 p.m. following the women's game.
