March 17, 2007

Kansas City, Mo. - No. 2 seed Oklahoma City University scored 58 second-half points to record an 84-68 victory Saturday against No. 10 Azusa Pacific University (Calif.) in the quarterfinal round of the 2007 Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship. The tournament is being staged at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City.

 

The Stars shot 57.6 percent in the second half while holding the Cougars to just 26.5 percent from the floor. Oklahoma City moves to 33-2 on the season and advances to the NAIA Fab Four for the second consecutive year and sixth time overall. The Stars will face either Northwestern Oklahoma State University or Faulkner University (Ala.) in a national semifinal contest Monday at 8 p.m. CDT.

 

After taking a 39-26 lead at the half, Azusa Pacific extended its margin to 16 points on three different occasions early in the second period, the last coming at 50-34 on a shot by senior forward Scott Zea with 16:39 left. Oklahoma City started to chip away at the deficit, then used a 19-3 run to grab a 62-56 advantage with 7:28 on the clock. During the decisive run, the Stars held the Cougars to just one field goal in a five-minute span.

 

Azusa Pacific battled back to within three points before an 11-2 spurt gave Oklahoma City a 77-65 lead with just over a minute to play.

 

Junior guard Kameron Gray led the Stars with 21 points and six assists. Senior center B.J. Walker dropped in 16 points, while senior forward Duane John posted a double-double with 14 points and a game-high 11 rebounds. Senior guard Nick Covington also reached double-digits with 10 points for Oklahoma City.

 

Junior forward Todd Martin came off the bench to register a team-leading 17 points for Azusa Pacific. Senior guard Demario Butler, senior forward Tristan King and junior guard Matt Oliver each contributed 10 points for the Cougars. The loss ended a six-game win streak for Azusa Pacific, which closes the year at 29-7 overall.