Clutch foul shooting saves Pioneers

Wayland Baptist was clutch from the free-throw line, hitting 20-of-26 foul shots including their final 11 of the game as the Pioneers knocked off Texas Wesleyan in a Sooner Athletic Conference tilt Saturday afternoon in Hutcherson Center.

Two days after struggling from the stripe in a loss to No. 15 Southwestern Assemblies of God University, the Pioneers (6-4, 5-3 SAC) came through at the line against the Rams, ranked the equivalent of 30^th in the NAIA. Freshman Devin Avent spearheaded the effort, sinking 10-of-11 as he ended with a game-high 20 points along with five assists.

Jordan Brannon added 15 points and Chinedu Okonkwo a dozen along with eight rebounds. Jibrael Washington pulled down 10 rebounds as Wayland managed a 45-38 advantage on the boards.

The Pioneers went on an early 13-0 run to take an 18-7 lead. The Rams cut it to two before WBU managed to expand it back to eight, 34-26, thanks to a 3-pointer by Avent right before the halftime horn.

The visitors from Fort Worth scored eight straight early in the second to take a 2-point lead, and after that it was a tight game most of the rest of the way. Although Wayland trailed just that one time in the final 20 minutes, the Pioneers were nursing a narrow lead until the four-minute mark when Wayland began to pull away a bit – thanks to exceptional free throw shooting down the stretch.

Avent made three foul shots in a row, Brannon and Josh Servantez a pair apiece, then Avent sank four more to end the game as Wayland went 11-for-11 from the line in the final 3:53. The Rams, meanwhile, suffered a series of turnovers and missed 3s as they fruitlessly tried to close the gap.

Texas Wesleyan, led by Sebastian Karwoski's 13 points and Vydal Bradford's 11, hit just 4-of-22 3-pointers (18 percent).

The win wrapped up a regular-season sweep of the Rams for Wayland, which won on Jan. 9 on the road, 78-75.

Next up for the Pioneers is a game Thursday night at Oklahoma City University (1-5, 1-5 SAC), which has dropped three in a row, most recently on Saturday to Mid-America Christian, 84-78. The Stars host Langston on Monday. Wayland's first game this season against OCU was cancelled due to COVID-19 issues.