March 14, 2007

Kansas City, Mo. - Oklahoma Baptist University defeated the University of the Cumberlands (Ky.), 77-72, in the first round of the 2007 Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship at Municipal Auditorium.

 

Senior guard Kortney Smith scored 16 points and added five assists to lead the Bison into the second round of the NAIA national tournament for the 10^th consecutive time. Oklahoma Baptist, the No. 16 seed in this year's 32-team field, improves to 21-10 on the year. The Bison will face either top-seeded Robert Morris College (Ill.) or Westmont College (Calif.) in a second-round contest Friday at 10:45 a.m. CDT.

 

The victory was also the 45^th win all-time in tournament play for Oklahoma Baptist. The Bison are just one win behind the NAIA record of 46, which is shared by Georgetown College (Ky.) and Central Washington University. Georgetown is also participating in this year's national championship, and will have its first-round game against Xavier University (La.) Thursday at 4:30 p.m.

 

Oklahoma Baptist led by as many as 10 points in the first half before Cumberlands pulled to within 38-36 at the half. The Bison quickly regained a double-digit lead in the early stages of the second half before the Patriots put together another rally. A three-pointer by senior guard Sam Brown capped a 13-4 run to bring Cumberlands within 66-65 with 4:11 left. But Oklahoma Baptist responded by scoring the next seven points to build its advantage back to 73-65 with 2:25 on the clock.

 

Junior guard J.R. Broadus chipped in with 14 points for Oklahoma Baptist, while senior forward Mike Fraser added a double-double with 13 points and a game-high 13 rebounds. Senior forward Julius Hird also reached double figures for the Bison with 12 points.

 

Cumberlands, the NAIA Division I leader in three-point field goal percentage, made 10-of-26 shots from beyond the arc against Oklahoma Baptist. Brown led the Patriots with a game-high 18 points and four steals. Senior forward Christopher Simmons added 10 points, while junior forward Mike Gibson grabbed a team-leading seven rebounds. The Patriots end their season with an overall record of 20-11.