Game Recap: Men’s Basketball | | Jose Montoya
OKLAHOMA CITY – Head coach Brent Owen told his team that he wanted them to play their best basketball in February and March. Tonight, Eastern New Mexico men’s basketball looked like they were playing their best basketball as they beat Oklahoma Christian, 79-58, in a commanding road victory.
ENMU outshot OC, 31-for-71 (43.7%) to 18-for-54 (33.3%), on a night they needed to snap a five-game road losing streak.
The Greyhounds and Eagles went back-and-forth over the opening five minutes before the home team took a five-point lead (13-8) at the 14:59 mark. Two minutes later, ENMU ignited on a 10-0 run thanks to high-energy plays from a pair in the Green and Silver.
“Malique (Oates) and Dwayne (Chester) raised our energy level when they checked in,” said head coach Brent Owen on the momentum shift early in the game. “Especially on the defensive end.”
OC did not let up after the initial Greyhound spark and they took a brief lead before Eastern pulled ahead to maintain a 39-36 advantage going into the intermission.
Eastern outscored the Eagles, 18-8, over the first ten minutes of the second half. Over the time period, ENMU was able to force key fouls to Oklahoma Christian’s forwards and convert on free throws and layups to breakthrough.
The game remained in the Greyhounds control and the team was able to secure a road win for the third time this season. Eastern now sits at 16-9 (11-8 LSC).
“I was really pleased that this was a team win,” said Owen after the victory. “Everyone contributed and we wore them down in the second half because of our depth.”
Leading the Hounds offensively was Greg Johnson. He scored 20 points for the third time in the last four games. The junior guard is averaging 11.8 points per game and added four rebounds tonight.
“I feel good tonight. Coach prepared us and gave us a good game plan and I feel like we executed it well,” said Johnson after the game. “Everyone played a big part and I think it was a team effort.”
Eastern New Mexico forced 20 turnovers and converted the mistakes into 26 points. The Hounds only gave up the ball eight times on the night.
Another key area for Eastern came from the fastbreak where they outscored OC, 14-4. Although each team was credited with six lead changes apiece, ENMU held the lead for 34:39 of the game.
Jahcoree Ealy and Eze Dike each scored nine points with Ealy dishing out a team-best four assists. Errol White and Jose Murillo ech hauled in six rebounds, including four on the offensive end for Murillo.
The Greyhounds are now tasked with a road game at the University of Arkansas Fort Smith. The Lions are coming off a 70-56 win over Western New Mexico and are 11-15 (7-13 LSC) on the season.
“We came to win two and we are expecting a tough, physical game against a good defensive team,” said Owen on looking ahead to UAFS Saturday. “We’re going to have to defend well and we are going to have to make shots to win.”
Saturday’s game will be livestreamed on the Lone Star Conference Digital Network with tip set for 2 p.m. MT. For more information, make sure to follow the team on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
