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OBU—Oklahoma Baptist University

Women Win, Men Lose at John Brown

February 22, 2005

SILOAM SPRINGS, Ark. -- Oklahoma Baptist University's men took a 68-52 hit from John Brown after the OBU women grabbed a 59-41 victory Monday night.


The Lady Bison (23-5, 11-5 Sooner Athletic Conference) took care of business in the second half and may have solidified a place in the NAIA Tournament. Now two games ahead of Lubbock Christian and tied with Southern Nazarene for third place in the conference standings, OBU could likely jump into this week's top 25.

OBU's offense stalled in the first half, going without a field goal in the final 12 minutes, but the game was tied at 23 at intermission. John Brown went without a field goal in the final nine minutes of the half but hit 10 free throws.

The Lady Bison trailed 34-30 at the 12-minute mark of the second half before Kelli Welborn, Keely Tolin and Rachel Heins sparked an 11-0 OBU run for a 41-34 lead with 8:17 left.

OBU's Shannon Plumb scored back-to-back buckets for a 50-39 advantage, and the Lady Bison closed the game with a 7-0 run.

OBU outrebounded the Golden Eagles 41-29 as Trena Robbins led the way with 11.

Tabetha Eaton led the OBU offense with 16 points and six assists. Plumb finished with 10 points.

In the men's contest, John Brown's 3-point shooting gave the Eagles an early lead that OBU could not overcome.

John Brown hit six of 14 treys (42.9 percent) in the opening half.

JBU's Reyjavick DeGracia took over the scoring load inside in the second half, finishing with a game-high 24 points. Teammate Brandon Cole hit five 3-pointers and finished with 17 points.

"They attacked us in transition and made some tough shots," OBU head coach Doug Tolin said. "I felt like we were trying to make a 10-point basket. We were trying to get back into the game with a spectacular play and that's not how you do it."

OBU, which trailed by as many as 22 points, got 13 points from Leonard Mosley and 10 from Evan Grace.

With the win, the Eagles guaranteed themselves of a berth in the SAC tournament with an 8-8 conference mark.

OBU (19-10, 7-9 SAC) must win one of its last two games to clinch a spot in the tournament. The Bison, who close the season with a pair of home games, lead a five-team pack vying for the last three SAC tournament spots.