Men's Basketball | 2/28/2019 6:48:00 PM
Oklahoma City, Okla. – For the first time since the 1986-87 and 2005-06 seasons, the Oklahoma Panhandle State University men's basketball team will be playing in a conference semifinal game, when the squad faces off versus (RV) Oklahoma City University on Friday evening (March 1/6 p.m.) at the Sooner Athletic Conference championship tournament in OKC.
To put that into perspective, the last time the Aggies (16-13) went this deep in an eight-team conference post-season tournament in 1986-87, none of the players were even born (and most of their parents were probably toddlers or pre-teens themselves) and OSPU Head Coach
Aaron Coombs was diagramming plays with finger paints as a five-year old kindergartner! In 2005-06, OPSU had a bye to the semis in a 6-team tournament in the Heartland Conference.
No. 8-seed OPSU reached the semifinal versus the Stars thanks to its upset win over top-seed – and NAIA No. 5-ranked – Wayland Baptist University. The OPSU defense held the potent Pioneers offense more than 14 points below its season average of 81.2 points per game.
The winner of Friday's game will take on the winner of the John Brown/Mid-America Christian match-up for the SAC tournament title and an automatic bid to the 2018-19 NAIA championships in Kansas City.
GAME NOTES:
*FOLLOW THE AGGIES: Links for live video and live statistics can both be found on the Panhandle State athletics web site: www.opsuaggies.com
*OPSU AT-A-GLANCE: The Aggies are averaging better than 84 points per game in 2018-19, ranked #23 in the NAIA for scoring. Panhandle ranks in the NAIA top-10 for three-point field goals made per game (4th/10.9), free throw percentage (5th/76.3%) and total three-point field goals made (8th/307). OPSU sports no less than five players averaging in double-figure scoring:
Breiman Alexander (23.7 p.p.g.);
Khallid Edwards (16.2 p.p.g.); Alan Hodge, Jr. (15.5 p.p.g.);
Baris Ulker (15.5 p.p.g.), and;
Jaedon Whitfield (11.0 p.p.g.). Ulker has been tough on the opponents, averaging 8.0 rebounds per game and 78 percent of those on the defensive end, while also amassing 23 blocked shots.
*SCOUTING THE STARS: Oklahoma City (19-10) earned its way into the SAC semifinals with an 84-73 win over Langston University. The Stars have won eight of their last 11 contests. OCU also sports a high-octane offense, averaging 83.8 points per game, and showing three players – Chris Williams (19.3 p.p.g.), Elijah Christman (11.2 p.p.g.) and Anthony Davis (10.7 p.p.g.)- with double-digit scoring averages. Eric McCollum tops the Stars rebounders at 7.6 boards per game. Guard Mark Howell has been a deft ball handler with 4.4 assists per game.
*LAST MEETINGS: Panhandle won both regular season meetings in 2018-19 versus Oklahoma City. On January 12, and with OCU ranked No. 12 in the nation, the Aggies scored a 90-86 road win. In that first meeting, Alan Hodge, Jr. had 22 points (13-of-14 on free throws) and
Breiman Alexander added 20.
Khallid Edwards (17),
Baris Ulker (13) and
Jaedon Whitfield (10) rounded out the quintet of Aggies in double figures.
In the second meeting in Goodwell, on February 14, OPSU sealed a sweetheart of a win over the then-No. 18 ranked Stars, 92-70. Alexander topped all scorers with 25 points and Ulker added 23. Edwards and Hodge chipped in 14 and 13 points, respectively.
*PIONEER DAZE: In the Aggies big win at Wayland Baptist in the SAC quarterfinals,
Khallid Edwards finished the game with a game and season-high 24 points versus the WBU Pioneers. Edwards was a solid 8-of-11 from the field, 3-for-4 from beyond the arc and hit 5-of-6 free throws. He also grabbed five rebounds and dished off a team-leading four assists.
Baris Ulker was close behind Edwards with 23 points on a 9-for-14 shooting effort. Ulker was a key force on the defense side of the court, corralling five rebounds – all defensive – and blocking four shots.
Breiman Alexander was the Aggies third double-digit scorer with 16 points. Alexander also hauled in four rebounds and had a pair of assists.
*LONG TIME COMING: The last time a Panhandle State men's basketball team reached the semifinals of an eight-team conference tournament, was during the 1986-87 season (before losing in the finals to Oklahoma City that year). The last time an OPSU team won a conference hoops title was in 1982-83, when it took the NAIA District IX crown and advanced to the national tournament in Kansas City. The 2005-06 team also played in the Heartland Conference semis, but had a bye the first round of that 6-team event.
* ALEXANDER THE GREAT: Panhandle State senior
Breiman Alexander's 23.7 points per game average leads the entire SAC and ranks second in the nation in scoring for NAIA Division I. Alexander has scored in double figures in all 27 games in which he has played this season. Alexander leads the nation in 3-point field goals made per game at 4.19 per outing, as well as total 3-point field goals made (109).
*HOT DOWN THE STRETCH: Khallid Edward's has been on fire the past three games, with back-to-back-to-back 20-plus point efforts. He hit a season-high 24 points against WBU in the SAC quarterfinals win last Tuesday, as well as 23 points versus SAGU and 22 points at Texas Wesleyan the previous weekend. In that trio of games, he was 26-37 from the field (70%) and 12-of-20 (60%) from beyond the arc.
*POST-SEASON SAC ACCOLADES: Four members of the Panhandle State team received all-conference honors, announced by the Sooner Athletic Conference office on Thursday. The group includes:
Breiman Alexander (2nd team),
Khallid Edwards (HM),
Baris Ulker (HM) and Alan Hodger, Jr. (HM).
*COMPLETE TOURNAMENT BRACKET:
Tuesday's Results
Quarterfinals
Oklahoma City 84, Langston 73
Mid-America Christian 75, USAO 74
Southwestern Assemblies of God 69, John Brown 94
Panhandle State 76, Wayland Baptist 67
At Abe Lemons Arena
Oklahoma City
Friday's Games
Semifinals
Oklahoma City (19-10) vs. Panhandle State (16-13), 6 p.m.
John Brown (22-9) vs. Mid-America Christian (20-11), 20 minutes following conclusion of previous game
Saturday, March 3
Championship
Game 7: Semifinal winners, 4 p.m.
