For most students, holiday break means traveling home to spend time with friends and family, but for the Oklahoma Christian University men’s and women’s basketball teams, the break contained travel and games as they continued playing at the end of 2017.
Before finals week, the Lady Eagles played two games Dec. 5 and Dec. 9.
The Lady Eagles battled Northwestern Oklahoma State University Dec. 5 in a 98–84 loss, after shooting just 36.3 percent from the field.
In the Eagles’ Nest Dec. 9, the Lady Eagles played Southern Nazarene University.
Freshman Delyssa Miller scored 24 points to lead Oklahoma Christian to a 77–63 win, snapping a four-game losing streak for the Lady Eagles.
The Lady Eagles closed finals week by traveling to Weatherford, OK to play Southwestern Oklahoma State University Dec. 15.
Despite career performances from senior Audrey Hayes, who posted 22 points, and freshman Katie Mayo, who recorded her first career double-double, the Lady Eagles lost to the Lady Bulldogs 93–89.
To close 2017, the Lady Eagles traveled to Lacey, WA to play two games in the Saint Martin’s Classic.
In the first game Dec. 18, the Lady Eagles defeated Seattle Pacific University, who was ranked 24th in Division II standings, 75–70. The win was the first win against a ranked Division II opponent for Oklahoma Christian.
During the game, junior Addy Clift became the 30th Oklahoma Christian player to score 1,000 career points with her first basket of the game. She scored 22 points overall to advance her total to 1,021.
The Lady Eagles won again in Washington Dec. 19 with an 87–72 victory over Saint Martin’s University.
Clift scored 24 points for the Lady Eagles to lead Oklahoma Christian to a win.
After her performances in Washington, Clift was named Heartland Conference Player of the Week and Eagle of the Week for the third time this season.
The Lady Eagles closed out 2017 with four wins and nine loses, one of those loses being against Heartland Conference opponent Newman University.
The Oklahoma Christian men’s basketball team went 2–3 over the holiday break.
The Eagles lost to Oklahoma Baptist University Dec. 9 in the Eagles’ Nest 80–74. Despite junior Roderick Smith scoring 21 points and grabbing a career-high 17 rebounds, the Eagles failed to mount a comeback in the final minute of play, being behind by only eight points.
While other students were traveling home for break, the men’s basketball team stayed home at the Eagles’ Nest to play Eastern New Mexico University Dec. 15.
The Eagles shot just 50 percent from the free throw line to lose to the Greyhounds 86–77. Senior Elijah Strickland, with 22 points, and junior Charles Shaw, with 12 points, were the only Eagles to score in double figures.
After playing five games at home, the Eagles traveled to St. Louis, MO to play two games in the Maryville Classic.
In the opening game of the classic, the Eagles defeated the University of Missouri–St. Louis behind Smith’s 33-point performance 73–66. Junior Jordan Box added 15 points for Oklahoma Christian.
The Eagles lost to Maryville University 79–62 in the second game of the classic.
For their final game of 2017, the Eagles traveled to Durant, OK to battle Southeastern Oklahoma State University Dec. 30.
Behind Smith’s 24 points and Strickland’s 23 points, the Eagles recorded an 89–82 in overtime against Southeastern.
After his performance at Southeastern, Smith was named Eagle of the Week.
The Eagles entered 2018 with four wins and eight losses on the season, one of those losses being to Heartland Conference opponent Newman.
Oklahoma Christian continues into Heartland Conference play this week. Both the Eagles and Lady Eagles go on the road for their next two games as they travel to Laredo, TX to play Texas A&M International University Jan. 11 and St. Mary’s University in San Antonio, TX Jan. 13.
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