SILOAM SPRINGS, Ark. -- Both teams shot the lights out in the second half, but sophomore Luke Harper scored 18 of his game-high 27 in the second half and the Golden Eagles blew open a three-point game midway through the period to post a wire-to-wire 85-68 win over Southwestern Christian (Okla.) on Saturday afternoon (Feb. 15), extending its unbeaten streak to 16 inside Bill George Arena.
Both teams shot well north of 60 percent in the second half, with John Brown (23-3, 14-2 Sooner Athletic) hitting 72 percent (18-of-25) from the field as Harper, junior Densier Carnes (15) and junior Kiree Hutchings (13) each hitting double figures in the latter period.
Southwestern Christian hit 65 percent of its attempts in the second half (13-of-20) and whittled down the John Brown lead from 12 points to just three, 55-52, with 8:46 remaining in the game. The Golden Eagles responded by marching to the free throw line and running off a 13-2 rally over the next 3:16, including a timely Carnes triple from the left wing, to take a 68-54 lead and re-establishing a 14 point advantage.
The hosts' lead wouldn't fall back to within single digits the rest of the way. Sophomore Ira Perrier's flush with just over 1:30 left in the game and the subsequent Hutchings' triple from the deep left wing put an exclamation point on JBU's 16th-consecutive home win, setting up a pivotal pair of matches next week.
The second half was quite a different story from the first as neither team fared well on offense. Halfway through the first stanza the squads combined for just 21 points as the visitors boasted a mere 11 points with over 13 minutes elapsed in the game.
In the foul-plagued contest that saw 51 infractions and 53 free throw attempts, both teams hit just north of 70 percent of its attempts. John Brown controlled a 34-26 rebounding advantage and transitioned 13 offensive rebounds into a 14-0 margin in second-chance points. SCU pulled down just four offensive rebounds as the nation's second-best defensive rebounding team limited the visitors without a second-chance point.
Carnes led all players with 27 points on 9-of-13 shooting and a 5-of-6 afternoon from behind the arc. He also added seven boards before fouling out. Harper eclipsed the 20-point mark for the 10th time this season with 23 points, going a perfect 10-of-10 at the charity stripe. Hutchings came off the bench to provide 13 points on a trio of triples.
Darius Madkin caught fire in the second half for the Eagles, scoring 17 of his team-best 21 points on 6-of-7 shooting in the final 20 minutes of play. Charles Dickson added 16 off the bench while Richard Anderson posted 10 points, all from the free throw line.
Up Next »
JBU returns to the hardwood next week with a pair of games inside Bill George Arena, beginning with a Thursday night (Feb. 20) matchup with Oklahoma Panhandle State. Wayland Baptist comes to town on Saturday afternoon for senior day as the Golden Eagles eye season sweeps of both teams.
