Men’s and Women’s Basketball
USAO Gets Double OT Win

CLAREMORE – Charite Lewis finished with a career-high 23 points and 18 rebounds as the University of Science and Arts collected an 81-76 double overtime win at Rogers State Thursday night.

USAO (14-10, 10-6) rallied from a 28-19 halftime deficit to tie the game in regulation. After only hitting eight field goals in the first half, the Drovers got on a roll in the second half and both overtimes. USAO hit 43.6 percent from the floor and a phenomenal 80 percent from the free throw line in the final three periods.

Led by Lewis’ 7-of-9 from the free throw line, USAO hit 24-of-30 free throws in the second half and overtime.

Junior forward Yesi Castillo finished with 16 points and 17 rebounds, and Luanna Jose and Juliana Leite posted 12 points each. USAO is still in fifth place alone with a one game lead on Oklahoma Christian. The Drovers host John Brown at 6 p.m. Saturday and St. Gregory’s at 6 p.m. Thursday in the home finale.

Men’s Basketball
Drovers Suffer Overtime Heartbreaker

CLAREMORE – With 32 seconds left, Eli Flores knocked down two free throws to tie the game and force overtime, but USAO couldn’t steal a road win as Rogers State claimed an 84-79 win Thursday night.

Flores’ overtime-forcing free throws capped a career-high 17-point night where the junior hit 6-of-9 from the field. Four Drovers scored in double figures led by Tim Nelson’s game-high 22 points on four 3-pointers. Thursday was Nelson’s eighth 20-point game of the season as the junior is nearing his 80th 3-pointer of the season. Nelson ranks fourth nationally in made 3-pointers per game.

Point guard Dexter Williams scored 13 points and dished out six assists, and DeAngelo Alexander finished with 11 points and four assists.

The Drovers did get have a chance to win at the end of regulation, but when the last-second attempt missed, USAO missed a golden opportunity to move into a fourth-place tie and sweep RSU. As it stands, the Drovers are currently in seventh place in the league with a 12-11 record overall and 8-9 in conference. The Drovers host John Brown at 8 p.m. Saturday and St. Gregory’s at 8 p.m. Thursday in the home finale.

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