Box Score
Plamen Hristov and
Barry Johnson combined for 11 3-pointers and 40 points, and
Travis Payton tied a school record with 15 assists to lead the Wayland Baptist Pioneers to a 93-72 Sooner Athletic Conference victory over Texas Wesleyan University on Saturday afternoon in Hutcherson Center.
The victory, which saw Wayland race to a 36-14 lead in the first nine minutes of the game, avenged a 75-71 loss to the Rams and assured the Pioneers (21-9, 12-8 SAC) a first-round bye in next week's SAC Tournament in Shawnee, Okla.
Head coach
Matt Garnett said the difference in Saturday's win and January's loss was the Pioneers' defense.
"We played really good defense today, and that immediately led to our offensive success," he said. "When you turn defense into offense, momentum can really swing your way and that's what we did tonight.
"On top of all that, our guys were focused and had good energy to start the game. We had a lot to play for today, but there was also a lot of stuff going on beforehand with senior day. The guys handled the situation very well."
The Pioneers were in control at halftime, 55-24, and led it by as many as 36 points, 77-41, before settling for the 21-point win.
Wayland hit a dozen 3-pointers, with Hristov getting seven and Johnson four. Hristov ended with 21 points and Johnson 19, and were followed in scoring by
Royal Crouch with 15,
Markus Monroe with 13 and
Juhreece Thompson with 11.
Bunja Yaboe added nine points and nine rebounds.
Payton's 15 assists tied Ty Harrelson's school record, set in a game against Schreiner on Dec. 30, 2002. Payton also put in five points and grabbed seven rebounds.
"We had a very balanced stat sheet today, but with Travis having 15 assists in his last home game is a testament to what kind of young man and what kind of player he has become while he's been at Wayland," Garnett said of his senior point guard.
"I'm really proud of all our seniors though," Garnett elaborated. "They finished off their home career in very fitting fashion."
Texas Wesleyan (15-15, 8-12) was led by Kenny Rhymes with 21 points, Jorge Redmon with 15 and Dallas Jones with 10.
Up next for Wayland is the SAC Tournament at Oklahoma Baptist University. Play begins Wednesday for the No. 6-11 seeds. The Pioneers' first game will be Thursday. Pairings will be announced on Sunday night. Watch
www.wbuathletics.com for details.
Coach Garnett says this year's conference tournament could be the best one yet, which excites the Pioneers' coach.
"This tournament will be as good as any SAC tournament has been," he explained. "With as many good teams as there are this year, there won't be a game or outcome that will surprise anybody.
"As pleased as we are with this weekend's outcome, we're going to hit the reset button and continue to work on daily improvement, which is what we've tried to do all year. We left the locker room today with the message that we'll be as good as we prepare to be. There hasn't been a game this year where we didn't come out on top when if we were prepared.
"We just need to put our heart into everything that we do because now it's the playoffs. You have to leave it all on the court. "
