Men’s basketball does battle with Sooners at McCasland

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What is the difference between an NCAA Division I and NCAA Division II team? Monday night in Norman, Okla. it was only 12 points.

In a game played at historic McCasland Field House, where Oklahoma University basketball games were played until Lloyd Noble Arena was opened in 1975, the Sooner fans in attendance were stunned when Oklahoma Christian University held the lead at halftime, 41-38.

It took cramps, foul trouble and more pressure defense by the Sooners for Oklahoma University to finally distance themselves from the upset bid by the Eagles. Oklahoma used a 16-4 run in the second half to gain the lead for good.

For senior point guard Kendre Talley, the difference between halves was most evident in the intensity.

“The difference in the first and second half was the defensive pressure,” Talley said. “They started pressing full court and denying me the ball. It helped them gain momentum and took us a while to adjust.”

Only three players in the Eagles’ starting lineup played major minutes last year, with  Talley as the only returning starter.

Senior Eric Randall, the only other senior on the team, tore his ACL during pre-season conditioning, and will be out for the entire season.

The three Eagles with experience showed their leadership throughout the game. Junior Willie Harper scored 24 points, shooting 9-of-17 from the field, and pulling down six rebounds. Junior Nick Tate scored 18 points in just 18 minutes, while being hampered with foul trouble all game.

Senior point guard Talley had 16 points and six assists while playing 38 of 40 minutes.

Talley stole the ball from OU point guard Jordan Woodard and sent a cross-court pass to Harper, who hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Eagles a 41-38 halftime lead. The shot sent the Oklahoma Christian bench spilling onto the court in excitement.

Talley recalled his emotions as he made his way back to the locker room at halftime.

“Just being up at halftime will be a memory from this game that I will always have,” Talley said. “It was a big deal being the underdogs that we were. In a way, that was a big accomplishment.”

According to Sooner’s head men’s basketball coach Lon Kruger, the Eagles had good reason to be proud, as he told Ryan Gerbosi of The Oklahoma Daily.

“Obviously, in the first half, Oklahoma Christian did a terrific job,” Kruger said. “They controlled the pace and controlled the tempo.”

Kruger and Eagles Head Coach Dan Hays have a long history, dating back to the early ‘90s when Hays served as an assistant coach under Kruger on the 1990 U.S. Olympic Festival North team and the gold-medalist 1991 Junior Men’s World Championship team.

At the 18:27 mark in the second half, the Eagles led 45-43. OU guard Buddy Hield hit a 3-pointer, which ignited a 16-4 run. Hield and Woodard both hit two 3-pointers during the Sooners’ run.

Oklahoma Christian quickly burned all three of their second half timeouts, two while being trapped by the Sooners’ defense, and one on a loose ball. With 13:43 left in the game, the Eagles were out of timeouts.

Freshman John Moon brought the Eagles back within seven points with a jam over the Sooners sophomore forward Ryan Spangler.

Oklahoma would answer back with 12 straight points, highlighted by three dunks, bringing the home crowd back to life. Left with no timeouts, the Eagles had no way to stop the Sooners’ run.

The Eagles would close the gap late in the game, finishing on a 9-3 run, to leave the final at 88-76 for the Sooners.

Oklahoma Christian suited up six freshmen for the game, and all 12 players in uniform played at least one minute during the game.

Junior Josh Faurot relayed how this game differed from other games in his career.

“Probably the most exciting part about this game was getting to play against a very well-known DI school,” Faurot said. “Also, all my relatives watching it on national television was a really cool experience.”

Although giving up size at every position except for when 6’11” freshman John Moon was in the game, the Eagles held their own on the boards, with the Sooners only outrebounding the Eagles by four.

The Sooners were led by Hield, who scored 27 points, shooting 10-13 from the field and 5-7 from behind the arc. Edmond, Okla. native Woodard scored 17 points, and Spangler finished with 11.

For the Eagles, the game drew a good amount of publicity for the school and the basketball program.

ESPN college basketball analyst Fran Fraschilla was in attendance for the game, and commented on the Eagles’ competitive performance from his Twitter account, saying, “OU struggling with Oklahoma Christian Right now. Tied at 20. Not a shocker if you know how good a coach Dan Hays is!”

The Eagles will start their season at home on Nov. 9 against York College. The game will be a part of Oklahoma Christian’s ongoing homecoming festivities this week.

Questions still weigh heavy on the Eagles heading into their regular season opener. With six freshmen on the roster and only one returning starter, Oklahoma Christian has much to still figure out.

The result of Monday’s game, however, provides the team with a great deal of confidence, according to Talley.

“The fact that we played them close tells us if we treat every game like we treated this one, we can compete and play with just about anybody,” Talley said.