SILOAM SPRINGS, Ark. -- Freshman Josh Bowling hit a pair at the line for a 64-63 lead with just under five to play, but Oklahoma City (10-6, 7-3 SAC) responded with an offensive rebound off a missed free throw on the next possession and netted a triple to steal a 76-67 win against the John Brown mens basketball team (11-11, 4-6 SAC) on Saturday (Jan. 30) afternoon inside Bill George Arena.
After missing its next three shots, the Golden Eagles used a pair of offensive rebounds with 2:14 left to send senior Griffin Brady to the line. OCUs Terrence Bonhomme hit a timely triple at the other end of the court, and JBU was whistled for an offensive foul on the ensuing possession. Suddenly down five and without the ball, City finished with a bucket in the paint from Dorion Gigger to complete the victory.
Similar to its last game against St. Gregorys (Okla.), the Golden Eagles were held without a field goal over the final 5:55, as the Stars hit 4-of-6 from the line in the final minute to ice the game.
Senior Luke Moyer led JBU with 17 points on 4-of-8 shooting and a 6-of-6 mark from the stripe, while senior Griffin Brady had 14, junior Ricky Roberts 12 and freshman Josh Bowling 11.
The Golden Eagles out-boarded the visitors 31-29, but the City bench enjoyed a 33-16 scoring advantage in the battle of the reserves. After shooting a mere 28 percent from the field in the first half, John Brown responded with a 50 percent effort in the second half to draw the game close and ultimately take a late lead. The Stars shot nearly 50 percent in both halves, finishing at 49.1 percent (28-of-27) while JBU hit 38.3 percent (18-of-47) of the shots attempted.
Turnovers again proved pivotal as John Brown coughed the ball up 14 times, seven in both halves, while City turned the ball over just twice in the final 20 minutes to finish with nine.
Bonhomme scored 23 points to lead Oklahoma City, while Evan White had 13 and Lou Dunbar added 10. Gigger picked up his sixth double-double of the season, notching 10 points and 10 caroms.
JBU will conclude its three-game homestand on Thursday (Feb. 4) when it welcomes upstart Southwestern Christian (Okla.) to Bill George Arena for an 8 p.m. tip.
