Athletic Report
December 1, 2001

SW OKLAHOMA EDGES ENMU, 73-71, ON BASKET BY DONZELL HAYES WITH 0:03 LEFT
WEATHERFORD, OK — Donzell Hayes scored his only basket of the game on a layup with 3 seconds left, sending Southwestern Oklahoma State University to a 73-71 victory over Eastern New Mexico University, Dec. 1 in Weatherford, Okla. The Bulldogs evened their record at 3-3 with SWOSU’s third consecutive win.ENMU fell to 3-2 on the season.

The Bulldogs began their final possession with 19.9 seconds left, after Eastern’s Jonathan Cooper (Jr., G, Richton Park, IL/Chaffey College) tied the game, 71-71, on a 3-point basket. SW Oklahoma held the ball until the closing seconds, when the Bulldogs cleared out the lane for Hayes to take the game-winning shot. Hays was 1 for 5 from the floor and 2 for 3 at the line for 4 points overall. His winning shot ended a close game that featured 12 ties and 5 lead changes in the second half.

ENMU, however, led most of the first half. The Greyhounds took an 8-6 lead with 16:44 remaining in the opening period, then extended their lead to nine points, 20-11, at the 10:58 mark on a 3-pointer by Keenan Hooker (Fr., G, Amarillo, TX/Randall H.S.).

SWOSU fought back to within two points at 23-21, with 7:50 on the clock. Eastern increased its advantage back to nine points, 35-26, with 2:52 left, and led 37-28 at the 2:02 mark. The Bulldogs ended the half with a 7-0 run to trim the deficit to two points. Milan Pepper completed the run with a layup and foul shot five seconds before halftime. The Bulldogs tied the game on the first basket of the second half, and held the largest lead of the period at 48-43 with 12:46 remaining.

Eastern answered with back-to-back 3-pointers by Rudy Charles (So., G, Las Vegas, NV/Durango H.S.) to move in front, 49-48, with 11:24 left. Neither team could take command of the game the rest of the way. The game was tied, 68-68, before Arturo Jones hit a 3-pointer for SWOSU with 1:24 remaining.

Eastern missed three field goal attempts on its next possession, and fouled Hayes with 36 seconds left. Hayes missed the charity shot, and Joel Simpson (Jr., F, Detroit, MI/Kilgore College). Cooper then followed with his only 3-pointer of the game to tied the score for the last time. Cooper led Eastern New Mexico with 19 points and 7 rebounds. He was 8 of 13 from the field and 2 for 2 at the line. He also led the Greyhounds with 30 minutes played.

Nine other ENMU players saw at least 11 minutes of action. Hooker finished the game with 11 points and was 3 of 4 on field goals - all from 3-point range. Garland Coleman (So., G/F, Flossmoor, IL/Homewood-Flossmoor H.S.) provided 10 points on 5 of 8 shooting. Coleman also hauled down 5 boards, supplied 4 assists and earned 2 steals.

Charles contributed 9 points on three 3-point shots, and matched Coleman with 4 assists. The Hounds earned a 40-30 rebounding edge. Cooper’s 7 rebounds were followed closely by 5 boards apiece from Coleman, Cedric Palmer (Jr., F, Houston, TX/McLennan C.C.) and Jamaal Hunnicutt (Fr., F, Amarillo, TX/Hill J.C./Randall H.S.).

SWOSU’s rebounding efforts were led by Cochise Valentine, with 9 rebounds, and DeVon Rice with 8 rebounds. Milan Pepper of SW Oklahoma topped all players with 30 points. He converted 13 of 22 field goals, was 3 for 5 at the line, and earned 3 steals. He also provided 4 rebounds.

Valentine and Rice also reached double figures, with 15 points and 10 points, respectively. Valentine was 6 of 10 from the field, while Rice sank 4 of 5 shots. Rice also achieved 4 assists, blocked 2 shots, and recorded 2 steals. No other player scored more than 6 points for SWOSU. SW Oklahoma shot 50.0% for the game (30 of 60), including 57.1% (16 of 28) in the second half.

The Bulldogs made 3 of 12 shots from behind the 3-point arc. Eastern was 27 of 62 on field goals (43.5%) after shooting 53.3% (16 of 30) in the first half and 34.4% (11 of 32) in the second half. ENMU converted 7 of 20 three-point shots (35.0%). The Greyhounds made 24 turnovers, while SWOSU lost the ball 19 times.

The Greyhounds return to Portales, N.M., for their second home game of the season on Thursday, Dec. 6, against Midwestern State University. Tipoff at Greyhound Arena is set for 8:00 p.m. (MST), following the women’s game between ENMU and Midwestern.