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Drovers Sweep St. Gregory’s
CHICKASHA – With strong second-half performances, the
University of Science and Arts basketball teams easily handled St.
Gregory’s in a Saturday night doubleheader inside the USAO Fieldhouse.
The women started off the night with a 66-37 win, and
the men collected their second win of the year 77-58. Both teams
improved to 2-1 in Sooner Athletic Conference play after falling to
Oklahoma Baptist Thursday night at home. The USAO women are 9-4
overall while the men are 2-8 with both wins coming in the most
difficult conference in America.
A 9-for-36 first-half shooting performance from the
Drover women had the visitors thinking upset. USAO only led the 2-11
Lady Cavs 28-23 at halftime. SGU was only down 10 points midway
through the second half when the Drovers caught fire.
With scoring coming from almost everyone on the roster,
the Drovers started a 13-0 at the 10:15 mark of the second half to
break the game wide open. SGU only managed to score six points the
rest of the game.
Kartesha Rambo led all scorers with 16 points while
seniors Lindsey Monroe and Nikki Yager each scored 12 points and added
seven rebounds. Yager did nothing but improve her .697 shooting
percentage which ranks No. 1 in the country. She finished hitting
5-of-6 from the floor.
The men’s game followed a similar script. Both teams
connected on 13-of-30 from the floor in the first half, but USAO held
a 38-30 halftime lead thanks to some timely 3-point shooting. Leading
the way was Rafeyon Calhoun in his first career start. He finished
hitting 4-of-6 from behind the arc for 12 points.
An 8-0 run through the first five minutes of the second
half helped USAO build a lead they would not lose. SGU got within 14
points with 7:45 left, but an Avery Stevenson 3-pointer and a steal
and dunk by Thomas Woods pushed the lead back to a comfortable size.
Stevenson led all scorers with a season-high 24 points
on 8-of-15 shooting. The senior added seven rebounds and went 6-of-6
from the free throw line. Dalane Finley had a great night as well with
15 points, 13 rebounds, four steals and one blocked shot. Calhoun’s
dozen and 11 points from DeAngelo Alexander rounded out most of USAO’s
scoring.
Thomas Woods, the Drovers’ leading scorer, finished
with six points. Verrick Gray and Stan Bolden came off the bench to
post seven and two points, respectively.
The teams travel to Southern Nazarene for a 6 and 8
p.m. series on Thursday. Saturday night USAO will host John Brown
beginning at 6 p.m. and will feature the school’s first “Whiteout”
promotion. The teams ask fans to wear white shirts to show support.
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