BETHANY, Okla. -- Gilbert Gyamfi knocked down the game-winning triple with 18 seconds left and the Golden Eagles (14-8, 4-8 SAC) held Southwestern Christian (Okla.) to an 0-of-5 mark over the final 2:32 in the second half, nabbing its second-straight victory, this time a 58-53 win tonight at Pickens-Springer Gymnasium in Bethany.
Kofi Josephs landed a pair of free throws at the 4:41 mark of the second half, handing JBU a 51-48 lead. After allowing SCU to score on the ensuing possession, Gyamfi secured his own miss and dropped in the follow-up, pushing the lead to three, 53-50. Kurtis Phillips missed a three-pointer after grabbing an errant shot by the hosts, and the Eagles tied the game on a triple with 2:32 remaining in the game. It would be SCU's final points of the evening, however, as the Golden Eagles forced SCU in five-consecutive missed shots while Gyamfi scored the game-winning trey from the top of the arc with 18 seconds left. Phillips corralled the hosts' final heave before earning a foul. Phillips sank both at the line with four seconds on the clock to secure a 58-53 win.
Gyamfi scored a game-high 23 points on 10-of-14 shooting from the floor. He also scored a pair of JBU's six triples on the evening while falling just one rebound shy of a double-double. The output marked the ninth time Gyamfi has eclipsed 20 points this season. Josephs chipped in with 12 points, earning nine in a perfect night at the line. Phillips collected a game-high 10 rebounds while scoring seven points. Max Hopfgartner finished 4-of-10 from the floor, netting eight points, while grabbing eight rebounds.
The Golden Eagles dominated the first stretch of the night and jumped out to a 7-0 lead before SCU could score its first points of the night over three minutes into the contest. Sporting a 13-5 lead, Zach English drained his first triple of the half at the 11:17 mark before knocking down his second-straight just 25 seconds later. John Brown held a game-high 14 point lead, 19-5, but a quick 10-3 run by the hosts pulled the Eagles to within seven, 22-15. Both teams traded buckets until Southwestern Christian ended the first half with a long-range bucket, whittling the visitors' lead down to just six, 26-20, at the break.
Gyamfi scored the first four points of the second frame and Josephs hit a three-pointer, pushing the advantage back to double-digits, 33-23. Phillips later scored a bucket off an assist from Hopfgartner at the 11:14 mark, but Southwestern Christian made began to make its run. SCU would out-score John Brown 17-7 over the next six minutes, forcing a one-point game, 49-48, with 5:14 remaining in the game.
The Golden Eagles held a 12-rebound advantage over the hosts, 42-34, and owned a 26-20 advantage in points in the paint. Phillips and Gyamfi each secured a trio of offensive rebounds as John Brown translated nine offensive boards into 13 second-chance points. JBU committed 11 turnovers, its second-lowest rate of miscues this season.
Southwestern Christian (6-14, 2-11 SAC) could only manage a 30.6 percent outing from the floor (19-of-62) after notching just a 25.8 percent clip in the first half (8-of-31). John Brown responded with a 38.5 percent effort from the field (20-of-52) while draining 12-of-13 chances from the free throw line (92.3 percent), its best single-game percentage at the line this season.
The hosts were paced by Robert Rozim's 13 points while Reggie Sloan finished with 11 and Tyler Turner chipped in with 10 points and 10 rebounds, earning the double-double.
The Golden Eagles will now return to the friendlier confines of Bill George Arena this Saturday (Feb. 8) to welcome Oklahoma City (11-8, 7-5 SAC) for a 5:00 p.m. matinee affair.
