CLAREMORE, Okla. – It took last second heroics once again for the No. 6 Rogers State men's basketball team to top Oklahoma Christian Saturday evening inside the Claremore Expo.
Earlier this season, it took a last second pass by Kendrell Thompson and layup by Donald Williams to give RSU the victory on Jan. 12 in Oklahoma City. This time it was a 3-pointer by forward Larry Cox at the top of the key with five seconds remaining to snatch victory out of the Eagles' claws, as RSU prevailed 77-74.
The Hillcats held a six point advantage in the final 2:48 off an Alex Ewings floater in the middle of the paint. But the Eagles wouldn't go quietly as coach Dan Hays' squad slowly chipped the score tied to 74-74 with 47 seconds remaining.
Kendrell Thompson's trey attempt with 32 seconds to go was off the mark but point guard Maurice Rutherford claimed the rebound giving RSU the ball for the final shot. The Cats worked the ball around the perimeter before it found Cox at the top of the arc and the Byron, Ga. native sank the shot and the hopes of the Eagles. OC lost control of the ball in the closing seconds and never got a good look as the Cats won 77-74 to sweep the Eagles in the regular season series.
Neither team held a double-digit advantage during the game as RSU built a nine point lead with 3:40 to go in the first stanza. The Hillcat entered the intermission with a 39-36 lead.
With the victory the Cats reached the 20-win plateau for the fifth consecutive season in the program's short five year history.
Oklahoma Christian (15-10, 9-9) was led by Will Reinke with a double-double as the Lawton, Okla. native tallied 23 points and 13 boards. Devan White posted 14 points while Eric Randall finished with 11 in the scoring column.
Leading the Cats in scoring was Thompson with 17 points while Donald Williams finished with 16. Ewings came off the bench to add 11 points as Cox totaled 14 points including the late heroic trey.
RSU hit 50.9 percent from the field including going 9-of-18 from behind the arc as the Eagles were unable to connect on treys in the second half going 0-of-5 in the period and 23.1 percent in the game. The Cats were able to clean the glass against OC, out-rebounding the Eagles 35-27.
Rogers State (20-4, 13-4) will make a quick turnaround as St. Gregory's comes to the Claremore Expo on Monday, Feb. 13 for a 7 p.m. tip. The game will be carried on www.rsuhillcats.com/live with live video streaming.
