BETHANY, Okla.—Southern Nazarene and Southeastern Oklahoma State put together another classic matchup on Wednesday night as two of the Great American Conference powers went toe-to-toe to open conference play. It was Southern Nazarene who took the 75-66 win, turning a nine-point second-half deficit into a nine-point victory.
The game was tight throughout. Both teams held leads of nine points, but the deficit never grew to double-digits for either side. Southern Nazarene (3-2, 1-0 GAC) held a slim advantage the majority of the first half, but they surrendered a 17-3 run that flipped the game in favor of Southeastern Oklahoma State (2-3, 0-1 GAC). That run allowed the Savage Storm to carry a 36-32 advantage into the break.
The stats for both teams were eerily similar in the first half. SNU knocked down 12-of-27 shots, while Southeastern connected on 12-of-28 shots. Of those shots, each team was an impressive 6-of-13 from the outside. Each team hauled in 16 rebounds, including 5 offensive boards. The difference came at the charity stripe, where the Savage Storm shot 6-of-6, while SNU was just 2-of-3.
Things flipped in favor of SNU early in the second half. Southeastern built a 43-34 lead, but the Crimson Storm rattled off a 10-0 run to regain the lead. The lead then changed hands 10 times before Southern Nazarene finally began to gain some separation. Southeastern went cold down the stretch, missing their final seven shots from the floor, as SNU closed the game on an 8-0 run to seal the 75-66 victory.
Southern Nazarene shot 52% in that second half, while limiting Southeastern to just 34% from the field.
Adokiye Iyaye was the leader for SNU on Wednesday. He tallied a season-high 24 points and came up with some clutch shots when SNU needed them, knocking down four shots from behind the arc.
Along with Iyaye; Tyler McGhie, Javon Jackson, and Nick Davis each scored in double-figures. McGhie and Jackson each scored 12 points on three made shots from behind the arc. Davis added 10 points to go along with his 7 rebounds and impressive 4 blocks.
Mo Wilson II provided a huge spark off the bench. His presence helped spur the 10-0 run that got SNU back in front in the second half. He tallied 5 points, 7 rebounds, and 1 block.
The win kickstarts SNU's run at another Great American Conference championship. They came into the season as the preseason no. 1 team in the conference and are now off to a 1-0 start. They will hope to make it a 2-0 start on Saturday, but must do so on the road in Ada as SNU takes on East Central. These two teams have traded wins in each of the last eight matchups. The Crimson Storm won the last time these teams met in January. Tipoff is set for 3:00 p.m. on Saturday in Ada.
