OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - With an adjustment to the starting lineup and the Texas Wesleyan Rams (11-11, 6-8 SAC) answering the call, Men's Basketball evened their record on the season and came away with a pivotal road win at Mid-America Christian (12-10, 5-9 SAC) Thursday night in Oklahoma City, 82-76.

Joe Cook-Green got his first start of the season, hitting 9-of-13 shots with a season-high 20 points and a conference-high nine rebounds. Rob Thomas had 17 points on an efficient night from the floor (5-of-7) and from the line (6-of-6) - he grabbed 10 rebounds. Peyton Sallee notched a team-high 37 minutes, scoring 16 points and hauling nine boards. Those 28 rebounds nearly out-rebounded the entire MACU team (31) as Texas Wesleyan dominated the glass on the way to victory. The squad's 35 defensive rebounds were the most in a Sonner Athletic Conference game since February 1, 2018 when the Rams took 35 off of Oklahoma Panhandle State missed shots.

Texas Wesleyan shot 53.8 percent, including a 58 percent shooting performance in the first half. The Rams got to the line a whopping 20 times in the final 20 minutes, hitting 17 of those free chances. Sam Lorenzen also found double-figures with 16 points.

Neither team gained much separation in the first eight minutes - eight lead changes and three ties through that stretch. TXWES went on an 8-0 run after that getting buckets from four different players - Cook-Green, Lorenzen, Thomas and Diing Lwal Diing. The Evangels nipped at the Rams' heels the rest of the first half, tying the game at 34 but never taking the lead. Texas Wesleyan ended the first half on another 8-0 run, including four points from Sallee.

Free throws from Diing pushed Texas Wesleyan's lead to 10 to start the second half, the largest lead for either team. The Rams would expand on that lead with 14:20 to play. After a missed Lorenzen three, TXWES would go on to hit 6-of-6 from the line and their next four shots from the field, without a turnover or a foul, Sallee gaining a steal and a fastbreak lay-in. This expanded the lead to 17, 64-47, but the Evangels would come roaring back with a 14-3 run, cutting the advantage to seven - 68-61 - with 5:31 left.

Five straight points for MACU tied the game at 68 and the Evangels took a 73-69 lead in the next 1:17. In the final stages of the game, the Rams found their clutch cards. The Evangels hit just one of their last five shots, while the Rams hit all six of their free throws and their final three shots, including a dagger from Cook-Green out of a timeout with 17 seconds to go.

The 19 free throws were the most made by the team since the 35 made against LSU-Alexandria in a foul-a-palooza affair during opening weekend. January 27, 2018 against USAO was the last time the Rams accomplished at least 19 points from the line in conference. The Rams won the game despite just five turnovers from the Evangels, their lowest amount of giveaways since March 7, 2014. 

It was the sixth win against the Evangels in program history (6-7 all-time) and the second this season, earning a sweep. The Rams leap-frog MACU in the standings, now just a game back of sixth place.

WHAT'S NEXT
Riding high off of a road win, the Rams will return home to the Sid Richardson Center to face University of Science and Arts Oklahoma Saturday February 2 at 4 p.m. The Women's Soccer team's SAC Championship season will be honored at halftime. USAO is 8-6 in the conference. With a win, the Rams would split with the Drovers.