Box Score SAN ANTONIO – Two big second-half runs helped Our Lady of the Lake overcome a seven-point deficit as the Saints turned away No. 21 Wayland Baptist here Monday night, 86-83.
"They're a good team, and playing them on the road is tough," Wayland coach
Ty Harrelson said. "Give them the credit. I don't think we necessarily played bad."
Wayland (9-4), which defeated then No. 14 OLLU on Nov 22 in Plainview, 81-72, led 50-43 three minutes into the second half when the Saints (7-3) turned the tables by scoring 14 unanswered points to take a seven-point lead of their own.
But the Pioneers were called for a technical foul, which Harrelson said was a big blow.
"I felt like we really had momentum and had a really good chance to pull away," the coach said. "But (after the technical) they got the momentum back and started making some shots."
The Pioneers got back to within two, 57-55, but OLLU again got hot and went on a 9-3 run to open a 68-58 advantage.
WBU still trailed by 10, 81-71, before a big push in the final two minutes, beginning when
Josh Throns made a 3-pointer. Wayland got within two points when
Maurice Redmond drilled a 3, but only 0.5 seconds remained. The Pioneers managed to foul and put the Saints at the line, where PJ Escobar made one. But there wasn't enough time for Wayland to get off another shot.
Redmond matched his season-high with 30 points, one off his career best, in part by going 6-of-9 from 3-point range. Redmond also pulled down seven rebounds.
"Mo was great," Harrelson said. "He made a lot of clutch plays and really gave us a great opportunity to win the game."
Throns added 14 points, including 4-of-8 from long range. Redmond and Throns were the only Pioneers to connect from 3-point range as Wayland finished 10-of-22.
J.J. Culver added 13 points, four rebounds, four steals and three assists, while
Louis Timms pulled down a team-best 10 rebounds but was held to a season-low five points.
"J.J. was very good. I'm excited about his production and ability to step in and play well against good teams," Harrelson said. "I'm excited about how he's playing going into the Christmas break."
The Saints, ranked the equivalent of 35
th, were led by Joe Jackson's 27 points, eight rebounds and three blocks. Escobar added 17 points.
Wayland lost despite shooting better than OLLU from the field and the free-throw line and despite a healthy 49-35 rebounding edge. The Pioneers were hurt by 20 turnovers (Harrelson felt it was closer to 23 due to offensive fouls) compared to 13 for the Saints.
"That's entirely too many," Harrelson said of his team's giveaways, 15 of which came in the first half."
The Pioneers next travel to Edinburg for an exhibition game at 7 p.m. Wednesday against NCAA Division I (Western Athletic Conference) Texas-Rio Grande Valley (5-9). The Vaqueros most recently lost to the University of Houston, 83-58. Before that UTRGV had won three straight over Lamar (95-81), North Florida (98-84), and Texas State (72-61).
"It will be a tough match-up for us," Harrelson said.
