Complete Box Score

EDMOND, Oklahoma – For the second straight night at the Eagle Sleep Inn Classic tournament in Oklahoma, the Texas Wesleyan men’s basketball team fell behind early to a strong opponent, and was unable to catch up. On Saturday against Southern Nazarene University, the Rams were done in by the terrific outside shooting of the Crimson Storm, who buried 44 percent of their three-point shots in the 96-81 victory.

The Storm dominated the first half of the contest, hitting eight of 16 three-point shots, and sinking eight of 11 free throws. The Rams, in contrast, hit just four of 12 from long range, and managed to connect on only four of ten from the penalty stripe. Omar Quintero led the way for Southern Nazarene, posting 17 points, and Manuel Narvaez had a nice half with nine. For the Rams, James Whitfield led with ten points at the break.

In the second half, Southern Nazarene cooled off a bit, connecting on just two of seven three-point attempts, and barely shooting above 50 percent on free throws. The Rams, while they improved enough to outshoot the Crimson Storm at the line, went stone cold from the field, hitting on just 14 of 39 attempts for a shooting percentage of .359. Whitfield, though, continued to have a hot hand for the Rams, scoring 16 points in the second frame.

For the game, Quintero led the Crimson Storm with 30 points on 11 of 24 shooting from the field, including five of 12 from three-point distance. He also dished out seven assists. Narvaez also had an outstanding game for Southern Nazarene, scoring 20 points and pulling down a season-high 17 rebounds. Tyler Martin scored 16 and Chris Robertson had 13 points and nine boards for the Crimson Storm, who out-rebounded Texas Wesleyan 59-36 on the night.

Wesleyan was led by Whitfield, who hit six three pointers on route to posting 26 points for the night. He also pulled down eight rebounds, the first time this season he has led the Rams in that category. Senior Aaron Whaley hit for 14 points and served up a season-high 11 assists, recording his first double-double of the year. Joey Gladney scored 12 points, as did David Johnson, who also tied his season high with eight blocks. He now has 64 for the season.

The Rams fall to 11-4 on the year, and look to return to their winning ways as they travel back to Fort Worth to resume conference play against UT-Permian Basin next Saturday. They will stay at home for the following two games as well, facing Texas College on Monday, and then Huston-Tillotson, the pre-season favorite to win the Red River Conference title, the following Saturday.