FT. WORTH, Texas -- In a feat not yet accomplished since Southwestern A.G. (Texas) and Texas Wesleyan joined the Sooner Athletic in 2013-14, the John Brown University men's basketball team pieced together a game-ending 21-7 run over the final 7:36 to knock off No. 11 Texas Wesleyan 80-65 on Saturday (Dec. 1) afternoon inside the Sid Richardson Center.
Less than 48 hours after handing No. 18 Southwestern A.G. a 93-78 setback in Waxhachie, the Lions' largest home loss in nearly six calendar years, the Golden Eagles (7-2, 3-0 Sooner Athletic) remained perfect in conference play, riding a game-high 21 points from senior Josh Bowling.
The game, largely won at the free throw line, had a fairly large discrepancy in conversion rates as John Brown sunk 28-of-33 (85 percent) from the line, including an 11-of-12 effort from Bowling, while the Rams (6-3, 1-1) finished just 9-of-16 (53 percent) at the stripe.
The game-winning run featured a staunch John Brown defense that limited the Rams, which entered the contest shooting 50 percent from the field, to a 1-of-9 mark from the floor and three turnovers over TXWES' final 16 possessions of the contest.
Bowling connected on all six attempts at the stripe, and junior Desmond Kennedy and sophomore Rokas Grabliauskas each hit timely triples as John Brown finished the contest 12-of-29 (41 percent) from behind the arc.
Five players finished in double figures for the visitors, as Kennedy hit all six free throws and finished with 18 points while senior Jake Caudle, Grabliauskas and sophomore Densier Carnes each contributed 12 points apiece.
Most impressive was the John Brown defense which, after allowing College of the Ozarks (Mo.) to score 104 on Monday, rebounded in serious fashion. SAGU and Wesleyan entered the weekend, combined, averaging 89.4 points per game. JBU responded by allowing just 71.5 points per game, holding the ranked squads to 20 points below their offensive averages.
"Another gutty performance by our guys going on the road against a team that has won our league the last three years," head coach Jason Beschta admitted. "I was really impressed with our toughness. We finished the first half strong, thanks to a few stops and Desmond hitting some timely shots for us. But what impressed me most was after Wesleyan made their biggest run of the game, we really played well defensively and limited their looks.
"We made a couple of big shots on the offensive end and hit our free throws. It was a great road trip for us – starting out conference play at 3-0 is no easy task, especially against two of the toughest teams. We are going to continue to push ourselves to prepare because it's not going to get any easier from here."
Juwan Jones scored 15 for Texas Wesleyan in the loss. Julian Torres added 11 points.
John Brown controlled the boards to the tune of 32-19, and enjoyed 33 points off the bench, led by Kennedy and Carnes' efforts.
Completing a three-game road trip with a 2-1 mark, the Golden Eagles will now rest until Thursday (Dec. 6) when it welcomes No. 5 Oklahoma City (6-2, 1-1) travels to Bill George Arena for an 8 p.m. start time.
