𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗦𝗛𝗢𝗧 𝗬𝗢𝗨'𝗩𝗘 𝗔𝗟𝗟 𝗕𝗘𝗘𝗡 𝗪𝗔𝗜𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗙𝗢𝗥 🏀 Malachi's buzzer-beating triple sending #goJBU MBB to a 71-69 upset win over #10 Wayland Baptist this afternoon in Bill George Arena!
Posted by John Brown University Athletics on Saturday, December 9, 2023
SILOAM SPRINGS -- Down five points with 14 seconds remaining, the Golden Eagles (6-4, 4-1 Sooner Athletic) pieced together a 7-0 run that sophomore Malachi Reeves finished with a triple at the buzzer to lift the John Brown University men's basketball team to a 71-69 win over No. 10 Wayland Baptist (Texas) on Saturday afternoon (Dec. 9) inside Bill George Arena.
Junior Drew Miller drilled a deep triple in the corner and drew a foul to pull the Golden Eagles to within two, 69-67, and senior Noah Taylor pulled down a huge offensive rebound on the free throw miss to breathe life into the John Brown comeback.
Out of the timeout, Miller again drew a foul outside the arc, giving John Brown a chance to take the lead. Miller missed the first two, but drained the third, bringing the hosts to within a point, but with just six seconds left – prompting a quick JBU foul.
The Golden Eagles did just that, but the Pioneers' leading scorer, Linton Brown, missed the front end of the bonus, and with Miller grabbing the rebound and the hosts calling timeout, John Brown had one chance left with just over three ticks left in the contest for a miracle.
Sophomore Josh Stewart inbounded to Reeves, who rapidly carried it up the left flank of the court with time counting down. At the buzzer between the left three-point elbow and the sideline, Reeves' heave rattled around the rim and fell, exploding the raucous Bill George Arena crowd as the Golden Eagles improved to four wins in five league games played.
The Golden Eagles held a one-point advantage, 30-29, at the break, but the second half was a back-and-forth affair that saw three ties and six lead changes. With the return of Linton Brown after early foul trouble, the Pioneers (6-3, 2-2) built a half-high six-point lead, 43-37, but couldn't extend beyond that as the defenses clamped down. JBU's four-point lead just 14 seconds into the second stanza was its largest before Reeves' game-winner.
Neither team had greater than a five-point lead during the final 10 minutes of the afternoon.
Reeves produced his second 20 points outing in three games, finishing with 23 points on 10-of-21 shooting from the field, and completed his second-straight double-double by controlling 12 rebounds. Miller added 10 points and nine rebounds, while Stewart contributed 10 points on two triples off the bench.
The Pioneers worked the lane in the second half, out-scoring JBU by a 51-36 margin in the paint, while John Brown countered with a 22-12 scoring advantage from its reserves.
Both teams' offenses improved in the second half as Wayland Baptist finished at 44 percent (28-of-64), but couldn't get it going from deep, finishing 3-of-17 (18 percent). The Golden Eagles, meanwhile, shot 45 percent in the second stanza to end the day at 38 percent (25-of-66) and picked up its first win of the season when shooting south of 40 percent. The hosts also left a flurry of points at the charity stripe, converting on just 11-of-22 chances at the line.
Brown's 17 points all came in the second half as he added four rebounds and two thefts to pace the WBU offense, while Brett Leach added 14 points and nine boards and D'Michael Bellfield contributed 13 points and eight caroms. Meikkel Murray's 10 points rounded out the four double-figure scorers.
John Brown will now rest until it plays back-to-back exhibition contests after finals week. The Golden Eagles will first take on East Central (Okla.) on Monday afternoon (Dec. 18) in Ada, before taking on Oral Roberts (Okla.) the following evening in Tulsa.
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