Men's Basketball 11/8/2022 4:52:00 PM

2022-23 Men's Basketball Notes -- Week 2

THE WEEK AHEAD
After splitting a pair of games last weekend at the ACU Fultz Classic, the OUAZ men's basketball team is set to make its 2022-23 home debut this week with a pair of games. OUAZ begins the week by hosting Benedictine Mesa on Wednesday at 6 p.m. They then welcome Texas Wesleyan to Faith Arena on Saturday at noon.

Tickets for the two home games are available at OUAZSpirit.com/tickets or by searching OUAZ in the HomeTown Fan App in your phone's app store.

OPENING TIP
OUAZ enters the week with that 1-1 record, with both games played on a neutral court. They defeated Oklahoma City 90-83 in the season opener to start the season with a victory for the third consecutive season. Looking back to last season, the Spirit went 10-3 in Faith Arena, and they won the final five home games of the season.

The Spirit averaged 81.0 points per game during the opening weekend while shooting 47.4 percent from the field and 36.1 percent from beyond the arc. They scored 33.0 points per game in the paint while posting 11.0 assists per contest. OUAZ is eighth in the NAIA by shooting 30.0 free throws per game and 13th by making 19.5.

At the defensive end, OUAZ held the opposition to 83.0 points per game and 42.1 percent shooting. They forced 12.0 turnovers per game and turned that into 13.5 points. The Spirit currently averages 39.0 rebounds, 6.0 steals, and 3.5 blocks per game.

CLIMBING THE CHARTS
OUAZ was picked to finish fourth in the Golden State Athletic Conference by the coaches. The team was awarded 70 points in the poll to end one point behind Hope International.

Along with the conference selection, the Spirit received 35 points in the NAIA Preseason Top 25 Poll to sit among the others receiving votes in 34th. That is the first time the voters have recognized the team to start a season.

PLAY FAST
It is no secret that the Spirit like to push the tempo, and they are coming off an opening weekend that included scoring 90 points in the win over OCU.

In the program's history, the Spirit has a 40-20 record when scoring at least 80 points in a game. With last week's win, they have now won 13 straight when scoring at least 80 points.

NO LEAD IS SAFE
In the Spirit's first two games of the season, the winning team had to overcome a double-digit deficit to win the game.

The Spirit tallied from 10 down in the first half to defeat OCU, and then College of Idaho erased a 10-point OUAZ lead to win on Saturday.

SPIRIT LEADERS
Keshawn Bruner led the Spirit with 40 points in the two games over the weekend. He tallied a career-high 29 points on 9 of 14 shooting against OCU. The scoring effort was the fourth 20-point scoring game of his OUAZ career.

After scoring 22 points with 13 rebounds against OCU, Josiah De'laCerda added 15 points against C of I. He shot 56.7 percent from the field and is the only player in the NAIA with three makes from beyond the arc and zero misses. The double-double in the opener was the ninth of his career.

Kolten Hitt scored in double figures in each of the first two games and led the team with a career-high 20 points on Saturday. With a steal in both games, Hitt has now recorded a steal in four straight games dating back to last season.

Alex Villi had a solid start to his OUAZ career with a pair of double-digit scoring efforts in his first two games. He is tied with Hitt for the team lead with four made threes, and he shoots 36.4 percent from deep.

Print Friendly Version