FORT WORTH, TX: The Texas Wesleyan University men's basketball team (15-9, 4-9 SAC) took a thrilling 83-82 win over St. Gregory's University (11-10, 7-6 SAC) in Sooner Athletic Conference action at the Sid Richardson Center on Thursday.
Texas Wesleyan's
Demarcus Richardson made only one shot in the game, but the junior point guard picked the right one. Trailing by one with time winding down, Richardson laid in the game-winner with 3.8 seconds to play.
In a game that was tied 10 times and saw 15 lead changes, the trio of
Sam Akano,
Jerrell Ellis, and
Merv Lindsay carried the load for Texas Wesleyan.
In the first half, the Rams were able to put together a late run. Five straight points from Akano sparked a 9-0 run that left the Rams with a 41-33 advantage. In the closing seconds of the half, SGU's Marty Wilkerson missed the front end of a 1-and-1, and on the other end
Hasani Sumbry grabbed on offensive board and put-back to send the Rams to the locker room up 49-40.
Sumbry converted the first bucket of the second half, and the Rams took the largest lead of the game at 51-40. The Cavaliers stormed back with eight unanswered points capped by a layup from Aaron Mazibuko that cut the score to 57-54 with 14:27 on the clock.
Akano ended that run with a three, but the Cavaliers kept coming. A three from Marquarius Boddie cut the score to 65-64. Boddie then tied the game at 67-67 and again at 71-71 with three-pointers.
With 4:01 on the clock, SGU's Kevin Ritchie hit a three, and the Cavs took their first lead (76-73) since the score read 33-32. Lindsay answered with a three to tie, and two possessions later, a three from Akano gave the Rams a one-point lead at 79-78.
Entering the game's final minute, Wilkerson hit a fade-away jumper from 14 feet to put SGU on top 80-79. With 23 seconds to play, Ellis was at the line shooting the single bonus. He made the first, and SGU head coach John Martin called his final timeout. Ellis was unfazed and calmly knocked down the second free throw.
With 12 seconds to go, Trey Jones scored and was fouled. However, Jones missed the free throw and was called for a lane violation. The Rams took the ball down the court, Richardson found a seam and went to the hole where he converted the game-winner. The Cavs were left with 3.8 seconds on the clock and, with no timeouts, that was not enough to get a good look at the basket.
For the game, the Rams shot 51.7% from the field while holding SGU to 43.5%. The Cavaliers knocked down 14-of-38 (36.8%) three-pointers, but the Rams were a more efficient 9-of-16 (56.3%) from distance. Texas Wesleyan was also an outstanding 14-of-15 (93.3%) at the free throw line, while SGU was 8-of-14 (57.1%).
Texas Wesleyan dominated the boards 45-27. SGU countered by forcing 20 turnovers that led to 25 Cavalier points.
Akano posted his second straight 30+ point game, finishing with 30 points on 11-of-19 shooting from the field and 6-of-9 from long range. Ellis added 21 points and eight rebounds. Lindsay posted a double-double with 14 points and 13 rebounds. Richardson scored two points on 1-of-2 shooting from the field.
Wilkerson, who entered the game as the SAC's leading scorer and the sixth leading scorer in the NAIA at 21.5 points per game, finished with 12 points and eight assists. Boddie led the Cavs with 15 points. Kevin Ritchie added 12 points, and Trey Jones finished with 10 points.
The Rams will return to action on Saturday, when they travel to Siloam Springs, AR, to take on John Brown University. That game is scheduled for a 3:00 p.m. start.
Ramblings
- The Rams are 12-21 all-time in SAC play, 5-4 vs. St. Gregory's, and 1-2 vs. John Brown.
- Akano, who scored 37 points at USAO on Saturday, owns three of Texas Wesleyan's five 30+ point games this season.
- Akano, Ellis, and Lindsay account for 65% of Texas Wesleyan's scoring on the season.
