SILOAM SPRINGS -- Facing a seven-point deficit with just under 15 minutes remaining, the second half featured eight lead changes and neither team led by more than four points as the John Brown University survived North Texas at Dallas, 57-54, riding freshman Trae Oetting's triple from the deep corner to a crucial victory on Thursday night (Feb. 8) inside Bill George Arena.
The win keeps John Brown (13-9, 11-6 Sooner Athletic) in serious contention for a home quarterfinal game in the Sooner Athletic tournament as JBU pulled within one game of three teams vying for the overall number two seed in the postseason bracket.
The visiting Trailblazers (5-14, 4-13) enjoyed a lead as high as 10 midway through the first half, 22-12, but a late 14-8 JBU run keyed by triples from senior Noah Taylor and sophomore Malachi Reeves whittled the UNTD lead to just five at the break, 27-22.
Later facing a seven-point deficit, the hosts took advantage of a short 0-of-4 UNTD slump and rattled off a 9-1 run to take the advantage and shift the momentum for the first time since a game-opening triple from senior Tyren Collins. Consecutive buckets from sophomore Josh Stewart and sophomore Lukas Gabani ended the run, but just began the lead-trading.
Over the next four minutes, the squads traded the lead four times as scoring became sparse and the teams' defenses took over the game. Stewart's triple from the left elbow of the arc produced a four-point Golden Eagle lead, 48-44, but three straight UNTD baskets returned the advantage over to the visitors, again.
Collins worked his way out of a shooting rut and came up with an important triple with 2:51 left in the game, and an acrobatic reverse layup from Stewart kept JBU in the lead by two with just under two minutes remaining.
The Trailblazers tied the game on the ensuing possession on an offensive rebound with 1:35 on the clock. Coming out of a timeout, the Golden Eagles turned the ball over, but the visitors missed a layup and Collins came up with a huge steal after UNTD secured the offensive carom.
With 21 seconds left, Oetting hit nothing but net from the deep left corner much to the delight of the Bill George Arena faithful. North Texas at Dallas had the final possession, but a defensive stand left the visitors with a poor attempt at the buzzer that wouldn't fall, allowing JBU to finish the season sweep of the visitors.
Gabani came off the bench to provide a team-leading 12 points. Reeves scored 10 and pulled down eight of John Brown's 40 boards, while passing out five assists.
Kanntrell Burney led the Trailblazers with 12 points and Vernon Johnson's 11 points and 11 rebounds rebounded out the double-digit scoring for the visitors. Conner Kern also pulled down 11 JBU misfires in the loss.
Both teams shot poorly, both finishing under 35 percent, but seven John Brown triples helped offset narrow UNTD advantages in second-chance points (14-10) and points from the bench (24-23).
Although the JBU defense did well to produce 13 turnovers, the hosts recorded a season-high 11 steals in the win.
The Golden Eagles now turn its attention to Southwestern A.G. (Texas) on Saturday afternoon (Feb. 10), when John Brown welcomes the Lions to Bill George Arena. John Brown won the first contest in Waxahachie, and SAGU travels to Siloam Springs coming off a loss to Oklahoma City. Live on the SAC Sports Network, the tilt is slated to tip off at 4 p.m.
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