The Ouachita Baptist University men’s basketball team went through a six-minute stretch without scoring a field goal as the Tigers dropped a 71-61 decision to No. 17 Arkansas Tech in a Gulf South Conference West Division game Thursday at Tucker Coliseum.
Rowan Ledbetter scored 12 of his game-high 18 points in the first half, while Ed Keyes scored 12 of his 16 points in the first half. Antonio Benjamin added 10 points as Ouachita (10-7 overall, 0-4 GSC West) was 21-of-52 (40 percent) from the floor and 13-of-26 (50 percent) from the free-throw line.
The Wonder Boys (14-3, 4-0) opened the game on a 7-2 run after Brandon Friedel drained a 3-pointer from the left corner with 17:30 left in the first half. However, Brandon Rose scored on a layup and added a free throw with 16:53 remaining to cut the deficit to 7-5.
Trailing 15-12, Ledbetter found Keyes in transition and Keyes scored on a layup and sank a free throw to tie the contest at 15 with 10:42 remaining. The Tigers took their first lead of the night, 18-17, with 8:03 left as Roger Eiland scored on a fastbreak layup.
Ledbetter gave Ouachita a 21-20 advantage with a 3-pointer and Keyes sank a pair of free throws to give the Tigers a 23-20 lead with 5:31 remaining in the half. Ledbetter gave Ouachita a 26-20 advantage with 3:53 left with his third three of the half.
Arkansas Tech cut the margin to 26-24 after a 3-pointer by Dusan Radivojevic with 3:09 remaining. The Wonder Boys continued to chip away at the Tiger lead and tied the contest at 28 after a free throw by Terrell Northington with 1:23 left.
After a Tiger turnover, Arkansas Tech grabbed a 32-30 halftime lead as Radivojevic scored with four seconds remaining in the half.
Ouachita, which didn’t have a field goal the final 2:25, was 10-of-24 (42 percent) from the field and 3-of-4 (75 percent) from behind the 3-point stripe. The Wonder Boys were 13-of-27 (48 percent) shooting and 3-of-6 (50 percent) from behind the 3-point line.
The Tigers began the second half struggling from the field, allowing the Wonder Boys to grab a 36-30 advantage after a Chad Henderson fastbreak layup with 16:57 left. After a timeout, Radivojevic sank a 3-pointer to extend the margin to 39-30 with 16:34 remaining.
Arkansas Tech pushed the lead to 43-32 after a Troy Marcus fastbreak layup with 15:39 left. The Wonder Boys continued to extend the margin to 48-35 with 10:12 after a free throw by Chad Henderson.
The Tigers cut the margin to 56-44 after a Ledbetter layup with 6:51 remaining. Ouachita continued to trim the deficit to 56-46 as Benjamin sank a jumper with 6:18 left.
However, Henderson drained a 3-pointer after Keyes missed a pair of free throws to give Arkansas Tech a 59-46 lead with 5:32 remaining.
Daniel Maddox trimmed the deficit to 59-52 with 3:21 left on a jumper, forcing Arkansas Tech to call a timeout.
The Wonder Boys took a 62-51 lead, but Maddox scored on a layup with 2:27 remaining to cut the margin to 62-53. Benjamin’s 3-pointer cut the advantage to 63-57 with 1:31 left, but Laithe Massey scored on a putback to give Arkansas Tech a 65-57 lead with 58 seconds left.
The Wonder Boys put the game away down the stretch by knocking down free throws.
Radivojevic scored 12 of his team-high 15 points in the first half. Friedel finished with 11 points, while Henderson and Thiago Cordeiro recorded 10 points each. Arkansas Tech was 25-of-50 (50 percent) and 15-of-25 (60 percent) from the charity stripe.
The Tigers, who have played three straight ranked opponents, return home 5 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 24 to Bill Vining Arena to take on Southern Arkansas in a Gulf South Conference West Division contest. The game can be heard on the Ouachita Baptist University Athletic Web site at: www.obutigers.com.
