FORT WORTH, TX: The 13th ranked Texas Wesleyan University men's basketball team (10-3, 2-1 SAC) drilled the University of Science & Arts of Oklahoma (6-4, 1-1 SAC) by a final score of 104-87 at the Sid Richardson Center on Thursday.
Chris Gracela collected the opening tip and hit
Jerell Ellis for a 15-foot jumper just two seconds into the game. Ellis did not slow down for the next 20 minutes. The Rams quickly built a 10-point lead at 17-7. The margin widened throughout the first half as Ellis went toe-to-toe with the Sooner Athletic Conference's second leading scorer, Taran Buie.
Ellis nearly had a perfect period as he threw in 24 points on 8-of-8 shooting including 6-of-6 from long range. The only blemish on the box score was at the free throw line where he was 2-for-3. Buie scored 19 points in the first half on 4-of-11 shooting (3-for-8 from long range) and 8-of-10 at the charity stripe, but his Drovers could not keep up. The Rams held a commanding 59-39 advantage at the intermission.
In the second half, Ellis took a back seat and let his teammates carry the load. The Drovers never got closer than 15 points while the Rams led by as many as 26 (87-61) on their way to the 104-87 win.
Ellis finished with 26 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists.
Chris Gracela went for 20 points, 14 rebounds, and 6 assists.
Trevon Jeffery added 16 points and 8 rebounds, and
Sam Akano came off the bench to score 15 points.
Buie led the Drovers with 28 points, while David Tucker added 22.
For the game, the Rams outshot the Drovers 48%-44% from the field, 52%-44% from 3-point range, and 65%-60% at the free throw line.
The Rams will return to action on Saturday, when they travel to Bethany, OK, to take on Southwestern Christian University. That game is scheduled for a 5:00 p.m. start.
Ramblings
- Today's game broke a 6-6 tie in the all-time series with USAO.
- The Rams are 5-1 all-time against Southwestern Christian. The Eagles are in their first season under the direction of former Baylor University head coach Dave Bliss.
- This was the 6th time this season that Ellis scored 20+ points. He currently leads the team at 19.7 points per game.
- Buie entered the game ranked 2nd in the SAC and 5th in the NAIA with 23.6 points per game.
