DURANT, Okla. – Southeastern Oklahoma State picks up its first GAC win of the season, defeating Ouachita Baptist 82-80.
The Savage Storm (3-5, 1-1) shot over 50.0 percent from the field and beyond the arc, going 30-of-60 for field goals and 9-of-17 shooting the three-point shot. Southeastern out-rebounded the Tigers 45-34 but lost the turnover battle 17-8.
SE had four players record double-digit points, led by 24 from
DJ Dill, who was a perfect 3-3 from deep.
Robert Briley chipped in 14 points, while
Daniel Halldorsson and
Landon Condiff had 12 and 10, respectively. Halldorsson dished out a team-high seven assists, and
Jalen Williams would pace the side with nine rebounds.
A back-and-forth start to the game saw three early lead changes, as the Storm led 10-6 after a three-pointer from Condiff. SE added to its lead moments later with a triple by Halldorsson, and a second three-pointer by Chandler Dickson would extend the gap to 18-12. Ouachita stayed on the heels of the Storm, tying the score 20-all on an 8-2 burst.
Southeastern regained the lead through a three-pointer and layup by Dill, 27-20, but another surge of points by the Tigers locked the score 27-27. A three-pointer by Halldorsson sparked a two-minute stretch where neither side missed, which saw Ouachita take the lead 38-37. SE grabbed the momentum late in the half, closing out the period on an 8-0 run to take a 45-41 lead into the break.
The Storm and Tigers traded baskets to start the second half, and the blue and gold soon built a 4-0 run behind a triple from Condiff. Ouachita replied with a 6-0 run to trim SE's advantage to two, 53-51, but a flurry of points by Southeastern grew the gap back to eight. From there, the Storm made six shots at the free-throw line to make it a ten-point game with 10:18 remaining the game.
The Tigers continued to battle, shrinking the Storm's lead to two after an 8-0 run, which was ended by a three-pointer from Briley, as SE led 71-66. Dill provided the next three baskets for Southeastern, including a triple to keep the Storm ahead, but Southeastern would soon be under pressure by the visitors following a burst of points that cut the gap down to one, 81-80. A Dill free throw with 17 seconds left proved decisive points, as SE held on for the win 82-80.
Soutehastern (3-5, 1-1) heads to Shawnee for a road game against Oklahoma Baptist on Thursday, Dec. 12, at 7:30 p.m.
