Men Fall Short After Frantic Rally
February 3, 2012
Southwestern Oklahoma State University wipes away a 14-point deficit in the final five minutes only to come up short against Henderson State, losing 77-73.
Ryan Donahoe and Aleksa Rovic watch as a ball sails out of bounds.
WEATHERFORD, Okla. – Southwestern Oklahoma State University fashioned together a frantic final flurry but could not get past visiting Henderson State, losing 77-73 in a men’s basketball game Thursday in Weatherford.
SWOSU erased a 14-point deficit over the game’s final five minutes and could have tied it in the closing seconds if Kenyan Borders’ three-point shot had not been short. Henderson’s Joe McCoy rebounded Borders miss and Henderson escaped with a hard-fought win.
The loss dropped SWOSU to 11-7 overall and 3-6 in the Great American Conference. Henderson, who will remain as one of the league’s leaders, improved to 12-7 and 7-2 overall. The Bulldogs will next play Saturday afternoon at home against Ouachita Baptist. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m.
Thomas Davis had 24 points eight rebounds and four blocks to lead SWOSU. It was the fourth straight game in which he has led SWOSU in both scoring and rebounding.
The Bulldogs also got double figure scoring from Chase Elliott with 15 points and Zack Howe with 13.
Denzel Lyles had 18 points to lead Henderson State.
SWOSU appeared in good shape early in the second half. The Bulldogs had led 34-27 at the break and extended it to 38-29 when Davis slammed home an emphatic dunk at the 18:53 mark.
SWOSU suffered from an lengthy scoring slump over the next 10 minutes as Henderson outscored the Bulldogs 29-6 and put themselves ahead 58-44 when Andrew Easley scored with 8:57 to play. The lead stayed at 14 for the next few minutes before SWOSU fashioned its comeback.
SWOSU scored its next 10 points from the free throw line and later when Filip Toric scored on a layup the Reddies lead was trimmed to 73-70 with 1:08 to play.
Howe answered at the 31 second mark with a long-distance bomb to keep the margin at three and give SWOSU a chance for the tie at the end.
SWOSU ended the game making 40% of its shots on 20-of-50 attempts. The Bulldogs were five-of-15 for 33% from three-point distance and 28-of-36 (78%) from the line.
Henderson was an even 50% making 31-of-62 attempts. The Reddies were six-of-12 from three point and a woeful nine-of-21 from the line for 43%.
SWOSU was outrebounded 49-27 by the taller Reddies. The Bulldogs had two fewer turnovers (14-12) and have five more team blocks.
