Box Score SHAWNEE, Okla. – Cheyenne North turned in a game-high 20 points, leading a cast of four Arkansas Tech players to reach double figures as the Golden Suns (5-1, 2-1 Great American Conference) used a strong fourth quarter to seal a 75-66 win over Oklahoma Baptist (3-4, 0-3 GAC) on Thursday night at the Noble Athletic Complex.

NEXT UP
The Golden Suns travel to Bethany, Okla. on Saturday, Dec. 3 for a 1 p.m. matchup with Southern Nazarene.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Tech controlled the opening minutes of the contest, outscoring OBU 12-8 over the first five minutes.
• OBU scored the game's next five points to briefly claim a 13-12 lead at the 3:41 mark of the opening quarter.
• The Bison led by as many as three in the opening quarter, but North buried a 3-pointer with 58 seconds to play – the final points of the quarter that set the score at 17-17 after the first quarter.
• After playing even basketball in the opening quarter, Tech opened the second quarter on a 12-2 run to claim a 10-point (29-19) lead with 5:28 remaining until half.
• Tech stretched its lead to as many as 13 points (37-24) – the largest Golden Suns lead of the game – on a layup by Kelsey McClure at the 1:05 mark before settling into the break with a 10-point advantage.
• The Golden Suns held on to a double-figure lead through the majority of the third quarter. However, Tech's 10-point lead (48-38) with 3:13 remaining in the third quarter was cut to just three (51-48) at the end of the quarter.
• Just under a minute into the fourth quarter, OBU claimed its first lead since the first quarter, and the two teams went back-and-forth until a 3-pointer by Pounds with 6:24 to play gave Tech the lead (61-59), and the Suns would not trail again.
• OBU tied the game at 64-64 with 3:52 to play, but the Golden Suns outscored the Bison 11-2 down the stretch to seal the victory.  

NOTABLES

• Cheyenne North reached double figures in the opening half – scoring 13 points in the first 20 minutes of play.
• Tech held a 24-11 rebounding advantage in the opening half.
• North was joined in double figures by Anissa Pounds (18 points), Calli White (13 points), and Danielle Frachiseur (10 points, 11 rebounds).
• Arkansas Tech held a 44-34 rebounding edge over OBU.
• Tech blocked seven shots, with three apiece from North and Frachiseur.
• Pounds connected on five-of-nine 3-pointers.
• Tech held a 22-18 advantage in points in the paint and a 12-9 advantage in points off turnovers.
• There were nine tie scores and nine lead changes.

COACH WILBERS SAYS

• On the difference down the stretch - "I think a lot of the difference was a lot of heart. One, we hit a lot of free throws. That was a good thing. We came down three or four times and really executed our offense well. We hit a couple jump shots, got the ball inside, and hit free throws. I'm really proud of our team. They overcame a lot of adversity here. Oklahoma Baptist is a good team – they played tough here at home. It was a good win."
• On late screens by Danielle Frachiseur and Ryann Goodsell - "They got her open. That's something we worked on this week. I thought our team really executed it well. We felt that Anissa got hot, s owe wanted to set some screens for her and get her some shots, and that's what a good team does."
• On the emergence of Cheyenne North – "She's a player. We all know that. It took her a few games to get used to things, but credit her, she's been practicing hard and getting better."