Jaranimo Marks scored 12 of his team-high 24 points in the first half and the Ouachita Baptist University men’s basketball team rallied from an early 15-point first-half deficit to knock off St. Edward’s, 81-74, Sunday evening to conclude play of the St. Edward’s Shootout Classic at the Recreation and Convocation Center.
The Tigers (1-1) led 71-69 with 1:50 remaining, but sealed the game down the stretch at the foul line with Rowan Ledbetter and Daniel Maddox going a combined 6-of-6 from the charity stripe. Marks added the final touches with 12 seconds left by sinking a pair to give the Tigers an 81-71 lead.
Besides Marks’ team-high 24 points, Ledbetter had a season-high 22 points, including going 9-of-13 from the foul line. Ed Keyes recorded 19 points and Maddox finished with 11.
Ouachita, which trailed 42-34 at the half, began the second half on an 8-1 run, capped by a Maddox short jumper to cut the margin to 43-42 with 17:27 remaining.
After a Taylor Mullenax layup and free throw, Jaranimo Marks scored on a fastbreak layup to keep the margin close, 46-44 with 16:11 left. However, Mullenax scored on a putback to keep St. Edward’s on top 48-44 with 15:51 remaining.
The Hilltoppers (1-1) grabbed a 56-48 advantage with 12:59 remaining after back-to-back 3-pointers by Chase Spruiell. However, Keyes got some Tiger momentum going with a 2-handed dunk and a short jumper to keep the St. Edward’s margin to 56-52 with 11:54 left.
After St. Edward’s grabbed a 58-52 lead, Rowan Ledbetter scored on back-to-back baskets – a layup and a 3-pointer from the left wing – to cut the deficit to 58-57 with 10:42 remaining, forcing the Hilltoppers to call timeout.
Ouachita, which was 28-of-36 from the free-throw line, took its first lead after battling back from a 15-point first-half deficit on a pair of free throws by Marks. A great pass in transition gave the Tigers a 61-58 lead as Marks found Keyes in the paint for a 2-handed dunk with 8:11 left.
A pair of free throws by Kyle Wakefield and a long jumper by Cory Griffin put the Hilltoppers back on top, 62-61 with 6:56 remaining.
After a Tylor Carr layup gave St. Edward’s a 64-61 lead, Ouachita responded with a 9-2 run, capped by a Keyes layup to give the Tigers a 70-66 advantage with 3:53 remaining.
Ouachita led 71-68, but a short jumper by Daniel Maddox and a pair of free throws by Ledbetter pushed the Tiger lead to 75-69 with 54 seconds left.
St. Edward’s opened the game on a 14-0 run, nine of those points coming off turnovers. Reggie Shanks’ 3-pointer with 17:13 left in the first half forced Ouachita to call a timeout.
The Hilltoppers continued to put points on the board and extended the run as Shanks sank a jumper and Taylor Mullenax slammed home a two-handed dunk, forcing the Tigers to call their second timeout in less than a minute and a half.
After hitting three free throws – one by Quintin Smith and two by Marks, Ouachita finally got its first field goal nearly six minutes into the game as Maddox drained a short jumper with 14:02 left in the half to cut deficit to 16-5. A Hilltopper turnover forced by Josh Raine gave the Tigers another scoring opportunity as Marks scored on a layup, cutting the margin to 16-7 and forcing St. Edward’s to call a timeout.
The Tigers, who were 9-of-24 from the field (37.5 percent) in the first half, continued to climb out of the huge deficit by knocking down key 3-pointers as Marks and Ledbetter hit back-to-back threes, in between a Mullenax short jumper to trim the margin to 24-19 with 7:59 remaining in the first half.
Ouachita trailed 28-21, but put together a 7-0 run as Raine connected on a pair of free throws, as well as Ledbetter and Marks hit a short jumper to trim the deficit to just 28-27 with four minutes left in the half.
The Hilltoppers, who shot 56.7 percent from the floor (17-of-30) in the opening half, responded by using a 13-7 run to end the half and take a 42-34 lead into the break.
Mullenax led St. Edward’s with 20 points, while Shanks and Jannik Zimmer recorded 13 and 10, respectively.
Ouachita opens the home portion of its schedule 8 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 18 at Bill Vining Arena against LeTourneau.
