OKLAHOMA CITY -- A five-point deficit late in the second half and four players fouling out in regulation couldn't stop sophomore Luke Harper and the Golden Eagles as the No. 9 John Brown University men's basketball team scored 15 points in overtime to take the season series with an 88-82 overtime victory over Oklahoma City on Thursday night (Feb. 13) inside Abe Lemons Arena.
The Golden Eagles (22-3, 13-2 Sooner Athletic) held the lead for the entire contest until a late Stars surge saw Oklahoma City take a five-point lead, 61-56, with just under six minutes remaining. Luke Harper scored five points before junior Rokas Grabliauskas drained a pair of timely triples to return the lead back to the visitors by five, 69-64, and capped off a 13-3 JBU run.
City's Trae Bryant converted a pair at the free throw line with 26 seconds left in the contest to tie the game at 73, the eighth tie of the evening, giving John Brown the last possession. Harper's triple attempt from the left wing fell short, forcing JBU's fifth overtime game since the calendar rolled over to 2020.
At this point, the Golden Eagles were without Quintin Bailey, Nemanja Obradovic, Kiree Hutchings and Ira Perrier due to foul accumulation, so the visitors took the court with a small lineup that also featured freshmen Nathan Stolz and James Beckom.
Harper hit 7-of-8 from the free throw line and the Golden Eagles received a timely Euro-step layup from Beckom with 1:28 left to push the JBU lead to eight, 84-76. The John Brown defense held City to 2-of-6 shooting from the floor in the extra session to grab the victory and improve to 4-1 this season in extra time contests.
"When you're able to come out on top in these close games time and time again, it gives the team a well-earned confidence that we can do it again in the future," head coach Jason Beschta admitted after JBU swept the season series from City for the first time since 2012-13 season. "It was just another gritty effort, but a slugfest back and forth of guys just making plays tonight. They did a great job of driving and getting to the line, but we had Luke scoring in bunches and Rokas doing a great job knocking down threes when we needed them most.
"Couldn't be more proud of the guys that came in and gave us valuable minutes off the bench in the second half and overtime. Our guys made big plays when we needed them. I'm really proud of the effort."
Harper nearly equaled his season high 39 points with a 36-point effort on 11-of-22 shooting, including four triples. Grabliauskas added 18 points and junior Densier Carnes scored 13. Senior Quintin Bailey was 4-of-7 from the field and scored eight points and grabbed eight boards before fouling out.
The Stars did score 33 of its 82 points at the charity stripe as a result of the JBU foul parade, but was held to 28 percent behind the arc (5-of-18). OCU did much better inside the arc, hitting 17-of-28.
While both teams secured 36 rebounds, JBU held a 32-26 scoring advantage in the paint, most importantly by a 4-0 margin in overtime.
The Golden Eagles shot 30-of-67 (45 percent) and connected on 11-of-28 attempts from long range (39 percent). The defense forced City into 21 turnovers while JBU committed 15 miscues of its own.
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JBU will puts its undefeated record inside Bill George Arena to the test again on Saturday as the Golden Eagles welcome Southwestern Christian for a 3:45 p.m. matinee affair. John Brown took a 98-91 double-overtime decision in Bethany back on Jan. 16.
