SILOAM SPRINGS -- Junior Luke Harper posted his third 20-point outing of the season and the Golden Eagle bench contributed 52 points as the John Brown University men's basketball team finished off the 2020-21 regular season with a runaway 98-74 victory over Oklahoma City on Saturday (Feb. 20) afternoon inside Bill George Arena.
Senior student assistant Aaron Kerr was called on to start the contest and, despite missing a triple from the top of the key in John Brown's first possession, hit a short jumper in the lane to get the hosts on the scoreboard, tying the contest at two. Senior Rokas Grabliauskas and Harper hit buckets on consecutive possessions and the Golden Eagles (7-6, 6-6 Sooner Athletic) never looked back and improved to 2-2 in Siloam Springs in the unconventional season.
Twelve different John Brown players scored, and the hosts bolted out to a game-high 27 point lead after a 16-1 run over a 4:29 span late in the first half. Sophomore DJ Ellis' triple jump-started the rally, and seniors Brenton Toussaint, Densier Carnes, Harper and freshman Noah Taylor each contributed buckets that blew open a 29-17 contest into a 45-18 John Brown advantage with just 2:37 left in the half.
City (2-6, 2-6) played wild and free in the second half – and forced 12 John Brown turnovers in the second half. The Stars scored 26 of its 46 points in the second half in transition, bolstered by Eric Amandio's 13 points over the final 20 minutes of play.
Harper hit 3-of-4 from behind the arc and scored 15 of his game-high 25 in the second half, and the Stars never got closer than 16 points, falling for the fifth time in six games.
Converting 9-of-16 from the field, Harper scored 25 and added five assists, while Carnes scored 17 and posted seven rebounds. Toussaint contributed 11 points on an efficient 5-of-6 effort from the floor and eight caroms.
Amandio's 19 paced all Stars as Rashaun Coleman added 17 points and seven boards in defeat. Kealon Clayborne added 13 points while Romario Spence notched 12 before fouling out of the contest.
John Brown will now await the official Sooner Athletic quarterfinal matchups, but the Golden Eagles are guaranteed to start the postseason on the road. The quarterfinals are scheduled to kick off on Wednesday (Feb. 24) as the four higher seeds host the fifth through eighth seeds.
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