WAXAHACHIE, TX: Senior guard,
Dion Rogers just beat the final buzzer and lifted the 12th ranked Texas Wesleyan University men's basketball team (17-3, 7-2 SAC) to a thrilling 66-64 win at 20th ranked Southwestern Assemblies of God University (16-5, 6-3 SAC) on Thursday. With the win, the Rams move into sole possession of first place in the Sooner Athletic Conference standings.
The Rams controlled the bulk of the contest, but SAGU whittled away at a 14-point second-half deficit, and a three from Adrian Palacios knotted the score at 64-64 entering the game's final minute.
The Rams came up empty on their ensuing possession, giving the ball back to the Lions.
Naiel Smith kept the score tied when he got a piece of Keyunta Watkins' driving layup as time wound down.
Trevon Jeffery grabbed the rebound off of Smith's block with 4.6 seconds on the clock.
After a timeout, Smith brought the ball up the floor and found Rogers for the game-winner near the free throw line.
The Rams had a trial run at the buzzer-beating scenario in the first half. The game rolled through five tie scores and eight lead changes before the Rams closed out the period on a 13-4 run. After a SAGU turnover with five seconds to play, The Rams inbounded the ball to
Trevon Jeffery who nailed a three at the horn to send the Rams to the break with a 36-27 advantage.
The margin swelled to 14 points at 43-29 in the opening moments of the second half. A three-pointer from Isaak Rowe got SAGU off the deck. That triple sparked a run of 11 unanswered points, and the game was tight for the remainder.
In all, the contest saw six tie scores and 12 lead changes. The Rams outshot the Lions 43%-38% from the field and held a +6 rebounding margin. Fifteen offensive rebounds gave Texas Wesleyan a 17-7 advantage in second chance points.
Trevon Jeffery's streak of five consecutive double-doubles came to an end as he finished with a team-high 16 points and 9 rebounds.
Jeremy Crane added 13 points, while
Naiel Smith contributed 11 points and five steals. Rogers, the reigning SAC Player of the Week and the team's leading scorer was just 4-of-18 leading up to his final shot, but did finish with 10 points.
Keyunta Watkins and Isaak Rowe each scored 20 points for the Lions.
The Rams will return to action on Saturday, when they travel to Shawnee, OK, to take on St. Gregory's University. That game is scheduled for a 5:00 p.m. start.
Ramblings
- The Rams lead the all-time series with SAGU 27-9 after winning each of the last four meetings. Texas Wesleyan is now 33-32 all-time in SAC play.
- The Rams are 7-4 all-time against St. Gregory's.
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Trevon Jeffery is averaging a double-double with 13 points and 10.4 rebounds per game against SAC competition.
- In spite of being credited for only 2 assists on Thursday,
Naiel Smith continues to lead the NAIA with 162 assists and 8.53 assists per game. His assist/turnover ratio of 4.5/1 ranks fourth in the NAIA.
- That kind of night: The Lady Rams also defeated the Lions on their final possession on Thursday. Freshman, Nicole Gleason hit a three with 8 seconds to play to lift Texas Wesleyan to a 51-50 victory at the Shaeffer Center.
