RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. – An 18-point early second half deficit was erased by the Arkansas Tech men's basketball team with just over two minutes left to play as Tech tied the score at 70-all, but Oklahoma Baptist ultimately did not surrender the lead down the stretch and staved off the Tech comeback effort as they held on for a 77-74 win on Saturday afternoon.
The tough and hard-fought loss for the Wonder Boys (8-6, 6-2 GAC) snapped a three-game winning streak and slipped Tech to a tie for second place in the GAC standings as conference play nears the halfway point.
Prior to making the second half surge, the Wonder Boys got off to a great start offensively and held an eight-point lead over the Bison (9-5, 6-2 GAC) with just under 13 minutes to play in the first half. A 10-2 by the Bison over the next three minutes of action or so knotted the score up at 16-all.
Tech and Oklahoma Baptist then traded baskets over the next five combined possessions as the lead changed hands that number of times as well. The final of those changes went in favor of the Bison on a three-pointer by Paul King at the 7:42 mark. The Wonder Boys were able to tie the game at 23-all about two minutes later, but the Bison did not relinquish the lead, making a layup on their ensuing possession.
That sparked a 7-0 scoring burst that gave the Bison a lead of that margin with 4:19 to go in the first half.
Just about a minute later and leading by seven, Oklahoma Baptist put together another run, this time a 6-0 spurt to grab their largest lead of the game to that point, 13 points, 38-25, with less than a minute left in the first half. The Bison would ultimately go into the locker room with a 10-point advantage, 38-28.
Early action in the second half was still being dictated by the Bison and by the 14:44 mark, they had swelled their lead out to its apex of 18 points, 53-35. The Wonder Boys would start to dig in their heels and fought to remain in the game.
Trailing by 13 points with just under seven minutes left to play is when the comeback effort really started to take shape for Tech. Over the next 2:47 of game time, the Wonder Boys went on an 11-1 run to get to within three points of the lead, 64-61.
Oklahoma Baptist was able to withstand that surge and stayed in the lead, but a 7-2 push by the Wonder Boys tied the score at 70-all with 2:05 left on the clock.
That tie score was short-lived, however, as Oklahoma Baptist went down on their ensuing possession and converted an old-fashioned three-point play to remain in the lead. Tech would get as close as a single point down the stretch, but ultimately, Oklahoma Baptist staved off the Wonder Boys for the one-possession victory.
In defeat, the Wonder Boys had three players score in double figures with
Tommy Kamarad leading the way with a season-high 22 points. Kamarad's big scoring night was fueled by efficient shooting as he was 8-of-10 overall from the field, 4-of-5 from three-point range and 2-of-2 from the charity stripe.
Wes Harris and
BJ Johnson were the others in double figures with 11 points each.
Tech will now prepare to hit the road for their next game as they travel to Monticello for a Thursday night clash with the UAM Boll Weevils. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at the Steelman Fieldhouse.
