ENMU men notch overtime victory

PORTALES - Coming off letting a 15-point, second-half lead slip away in their Lone Star Conference opener, Eastern New Mexico University's men rallied from a seven-point halftime deficit on Thursday night to top Oklahoma Christian 65-62 in overtime at Greyhound Arena.

Senior guard James Jordan, playing for the first time since Dec. 2, hit four consecutive free throws in the final minute of the OT as the Greyhounds (5-6, 1-1 LSC) tallied the game's final six points and used several key defensive plays late to stave off the Eagles (4-9, 1-1).

"It was definitely another tough game," first-year ENMU men's coach Brent Owen said. "We came out with a little different energy in the second half."

Freshman guard Kentrell Pullian notched his first collegiate double-double with a personal-best 20 points and 10 rebounds for the Hounds. Junior guard Cornell Greenwood added 12 points while Jordan, who had returned to his home state of Michigan due to the illness and subsequent death of his father, had 11.

For the Eagles, sophomore guards Moun'Tae Edmundson and Drew Tennial finished with 19 and 17 points, respectively, while freshman forward Nyk Madison notched 12.

Tennial sent the game into overtime by making two free throws with 3.6 seconds left. After Pullian's 3 put the Hounds in front in the first minute of the extra session, the Eagles scored six unanswered points to lead 62-59 with just over two minutes left.

Greenwood's basket cut it to one about 30 seconds later. The Hounds then got a blocked shot from senior forward Marvin Mapaga and a strip-steal by Jordan before forcing Tennial to take a tough 3-point attempt in the closing seconds that was off the mark.

Owen praised the play of his reserves, adding that freshman guard Niko Bossinakis was making his first collegiate start.

"Our bench guys were really stepping up tonight," Owen said, also noting contributions from junior forward Kevin Nze Mba and freshman guard Sebastian Jimenez.

ENMU lost its LSC opener on Dec. 31 to Texas A&M International 72-63 at Laredo, Texas after building a 42-27 lead over the Dustdevils with 15 minutes left.

"I felt like we could've pulled that one off against a very good team," Owen said.

In addition to Jones, the Hounds have been without 6-foot-6 sophomore guard Adam Hess since the break due to an ankle injury. Owen said he hoped to get Hess back in time for UAFS, but if not he could be back sometime this week.

Meantime, Owen said 6-7 senior guard/forward Jose Serrano has left the team and returned to the San Diego area to take care of his wife and young child. The native of Venezuela, a two-year regular, was shooting 58 percent from the floor this season and led the Hounds in scoring (12.4 ppg).

Thursday's women's contest was postponed due to COVID-19 protocols within the Oklahoma Christian program. Both ENMU squads now have a conference tilt to try to work back into the schedule later in the season.

On Saturday, ENMU was slated to host LSC tilts against Arkansas-Fort Smith at Greyhound Arena. The UAFS men (8-6, 2-1) are coming off a recent home win over West Texas A&M and a 57-51 loss on Thursday night at top-ranked Lubbock Christian, with junior guard Matthew Wilson scoring 20 points to become the program's sixth player in the NCAA Division II era to reach 1,000 career points (1,016).