Road Reward

PLAINVIEW, Texas (December 8, 2011) - Rashad Sample (18 points) and Ricky Roberts (12 points) combined for 30 points in the second half and Lubbock Christian University claimed their first Sooner Athletic Conference win with an 81-67 victory over rival Wayland Baptist University Thursday night inside Hutcherson Center.

Isaiah Jackson hit a jumper for WBU 2:22 into the second half and it helped the Pioneers come back from a nine point deficit and tie the game at 35-35, but it rallied LCU.  The Chaps scored on 11 of their next 13 possessions.  It led to a 14-4 run by the Chaps.  LCU was able to control the game following the run and never let go of the lead.

In the first half, Sample collected a pair of fouls in the first five minutes of the game resulting in Eddie Oropeza running the point.  He was solid erasing the deficit and fed Tyler Kennedy the basketball, as he had the hot hand in the half.  Kennedy had three-pointers on his first three attempts and had nine of his 14 points in the opening half.  The Chaps led 32-29 at the half.

The Chaps had five players in double-figures in points.  Sample, Roberts and Kennedy were joined by Anthony Brancato (12 points) and Jaron Vierra (10 points).  LCU was an amazing 21-of-24 (87.5%) from the free-throw line. Brancato went 7-for-7 from the line and Sample went 8-of-9.  Jackson finished with a game-high 19 points for WBU, with support from TJ Jacobs (12 points) and Jamie Eisinger (11 points).

The win was the Chaps first SAC win (1-2) for head coach Todd Duncan.  It was also the first road win for LCU and it evened their overall record at 5-5.  The Pioneers fall to 0-3 in the SAC and they are 5-5 overall.  The game was the final game for LCU prior to the Christmas Break.  They return to the hardwood Dec. 31^st for a conference game at Southern Nazarene University.