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February 18, 2001
SAU Defeats Ouachita
Mac Sisson
MAGNOLIA-The Southern Arkansas Univesity Muleriders kept their Gulf South Conference championship hopes alive with an 85-71 win over the Ouachita Baptist University Tigers, while the SAU Riderettes converted 29 of 37 free throw attempts to upset the OBU Lady Tigers, 75-71, in games Saturday night at the W.T. Watson Athletic Center in Magnolia.
With the win, the Muleriders improved to 15-9 for the season and 9-5 and tied for third in the tight GSC men's race. Mike Reynolds' Tigers fell to 5-19, 3-11. The Riderettes advanced to 10-14, 4-10, while Garry Crowder's Lady Tigers fell to 17-7, 9-5. Even with the loss, and two games remaining on the schedule, the Lady Tigers have secured a berth in the post season GSC Tournament, March 1, 3-4 in Tupelo, MS.
In the women's game, the Riderettes placed three players in double figures with sophomore Stacy Stockton leading the way with 21 points. Sophomore Meah Biley added 14 points and freshman Desheka Porchia chipped in 10. Stockton, a 5-8 guard from Prescott, also led SAU to a 36-31 advantage on the boards as she pulled down seven rebounds.
Freshman post Kristen Hurdle keyed OBU with 15 points with sophomore transfer guard Tracy Denney getting 12, Robyn Anders with 11 and Tracy McBryde totaling 10. Denney paced the Lady Tigers on the boards with seven.
Ouachita played without its leading scorer, guard Crystal Allen of Linden, TX, due to a death in her family.
Both the Riderettes and Lady Tigers shot 46 percent from the field, but at the foul line. SAU finished with a 78 percent clip while OBU was cold hitting only 53 percent (17 of 32).
Including Saturday night's games, Delta State remains on top in the league race (26-2, 13-2), while Arkansas Tech is second (18-6, 11-3), Central Arkansas is third (18-7, 10-5), and OBU is fourth. Christian Brothers, Ouachita's opponent on Saturday afternoon at Bill Vining Arena, is fifth (10-14, 6-8).
In the nightcap, the 'Riders led only 40-37 at the half but outscored the Tigers 45-34 in the last half to win. SAU shot 53 percent from the field, 47 percent from three-point range, and 67 percent from the free throw line. The Tigers shot 46 percent from the field, 36 percent from behind the arc, and 69 percent from the charity stripe.
The loss dropped Ouachita to eighth place in the GSC nine team West Division. It was Ouachita's fourth straight defeat.
In the game, SAU dominated the boards with a 37-28 rebound advantage and had eight steals to only one for the Tigers. Mauricio Watson had 22 points for OBU, while teammate T.J. Jones added 18 and 10 boards and Tim Lane contributed 16 points. Watson was nine of 14 from the field, one of three on treys and three of five at the line. Jones was seven of 17 from the field, three of seven from three-point territory and one of two at the line. Lane was seven of 12 from the field, two of five on three-pointers and did not shoot a free throw.
Jeff Baker and Bryan Biley led the Muleriders with 23 points each and Shawn Mason ended the night with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Baker was nine of 14 from the field, was two of three on treys, converted three of four from the free throw line and had seven rebounds. Biley was nine of 16 from the field, four of seven from beyond the arc, and had six rebounds.
On Monday, the Tigers and Lady Tigers travel to Searcy to play Harding University at Rhodes Fieldhouse. The Lady Bisons are sixth in the league with a 12-12, 5-9 record. Tipoff is at 6 p.m. The Bisons are sixth in the men's division with a 11-11, 6-8 record. The game begins at 8 p.m. Both GSC contests will be aired over KDEL-FM (100.9) in Arkadelphia with Dr. Jeff Root calling the plays.
Ouachita Baptist University• Lady Tigers
