Oklahoma Panhandle State University

Box Score Goodwell, Okla.—The OPSU men's basketball team earned their second win of the season Tuesday evening in a match-up with Hillsdale Free Will Baptist College in front of a home crowd. After leaving the court at halftime down by six the Aggies came back with force in the second half and fought to the end for a 76-67 victory over the Saints.

The Aggies were in the lead with 11:24 left in the first half after a successful three-pointer from John Lazenby pulled them up by two. The Saints tied the score with a layup but four consecutive missed baskets and a foul by the Aggies gave HBC the opportunity to take a five-point lead at the 9:26 mark (18-13).

A physical first half ended with each team going to the line four times; OPSU earned eight points from free-throws to HBC's seven. The Aggies closed the lead to two points after two shots from the line by Payson Slater with less than two minutes to play in the half, but the Saints grabbed an Aggie turnover and landed a dunk followed by a layup to give them a six-point lead at the break (42-36).

OPSU Head Coach Jerry Olson was "Very disappointed in our offensive performance in the first half; we were all looking for our own shots and playing selfish basketball."

Olson's team returned to the court with purpose as they opened the second half with a layup in the paint by Antonio Manns, Jr. and followed-up with a shot from beyond the arc by Lazenby. Now down by just one point, the Aggies sank their teeth in defensively and would only give up two shots and two free-throws over the next six minutes of play while OPSU found the basket for 17 points to take a 58-49 lead with 13:27 on the clock.

The Aggies suffered a slight cold streak over the next four minutes going 1-7 from the field and giving Hillsdale a chance to cut their deficit to one point at 9:05 (61-60). A jumper from Jared Straight inched the Aggies back up by three and two consecutive baskets by Manns added five more points to the board for an eight-point Aggie lead with six-and-a-half minute in the game. The Saints collected three fouls in the remaining minutes which helped OPSU hold the lead for a nine-point win at home.

Olson was "happy with the win" stating, "I'm really happy with our defense in the second half; we held them to 25 points and 29 percent shooting percentage from the field. We blocked out better and got stops at the end of the game. We were also in stances more than we have been."

Two Aggies led their team in scoring with 16 points each: John Lazenby went 5-6 with four three-pointers and was 2-2 from the line and Jared Straight went 5-11 scoring one three, he was a perfect 5-5 in free-throws. Manns, Jr. was close behind with 15 points and was the team leader in rebounds with nine; Straight contributed seven rebounds on the night.

"Antonio rebounded well and Jared is constantly consistent," said Olson of his leaders. "We also found teammates better in the second half with more assists; that's what we need to do." Manns shared the game-high in assists with Marquavius Williams offering three apiece.

Olson also felt that his team worked on Hillsdale's #11 (Phil Carey) more in the second half. Carey had 17 points after the first half and the Aggies held him to just four points in the second half; he totaled a game-high 21 points. Marcus Moody earned the only double-double of the game with 18 points and 12 rebounds for the Saints.

The Aggie men will take a short break during finals week and will return to the Oscar Williams Field House on Monday, Dec. 15 for a game against Bethel College at 7 p.m. Remember to bring food donations to all home games through Dec. 18 to benefit the Loaves and Fishes Food Pantry of Guymon.