UTPB Athletics

EDMOND, Okla. (December 12, 2024) – Freddie Word tied it at 77-77 with a tough layup with 30 seconds left and then hit the game-winning 3-pointer with just 0.4 seconds on the clock to send The University of Texas Permian Basin men's basketball team to an 80-77 road win at Oklahoma Christian University on Thursday.

Dario Domingos had 12 of the Falcons' first 16 points of the game and helped the Falcons take a pair of nine-point leads (22-13 & 24-15) in the first half.

After starting the game just 6-for-18 from the field, Oklahoma Christian battled back to retake the lead in the final four minutes of the first half, but UTPB closed out the opening period strong.

After the second 3-pointer of the first half by Sharrod Taylor, who entered the day just 1-for-11 from 3-point range on the season, tied it at 36-36 approaching the final minute of the first half, Domingos came up with his second steal of the half and Alex Matthews finished with a layup to put the Falcons back in front (38-36).

DJ Armstrong added a buzzer beater from three-quarters court to make it a five-point Falcons' lead (41-36) at halftime.

UTPB started the second half hot from the field, making six of its first 10 shots, including a fastbreak layup by Word off a long pass from Armstrong to make it a 10-point UTPB lead (53-43) less than five minutes in. Less than 40 seconds later, Taylor's third 3-pointer of the contest made it a 12-lead lead (56-44).

A fastbreak 3-pointer from the wing by Armstrong put the Falcons up by 13 points (63-50) with 9:18 remaining, but the Eagles hit back-to-back 3-pointers to pull to within seven (63-56) with eight and a half minutes to go.

OC kept its run going with a second-chance layup and a pair of free throws to get to within three (63-60) in the final seven minutes.

The 10-0 run for OC finally came to an end thanks to a floater high off the glass by Word.

Taylor hit back-to-back 3-pointers during a stretch where the teams made five shots in a row, ending with a 3-pointer by OC to tie the game at 71 under the five-minute mark.

Taylor would then go 2-for-2 at the free throw line to put UTPB back up by two (73-71) with four and a half minutes left.

A tough jumper from the elbow by Word made it 75-71 Falcons with under three minutes left, but back-to-back threes by OC's Keyondre Young on the Eagles' next two possessions flipped the lead to the Eagles' favor and put UTPB behind by two (77-75) in the final two minutes. The go-ahead 3-pointer by Young was good for his sixth 3-pointer of the night.

Fortunately for UTPB, Word would tie it at 77 with another tough layup with 30 seconds left. However, after a miss on a layup by the Eagles with just nine seconds left, UTPB could not secure the defensive rebound and instead fouled Miles Gibson, who somehow missed both free throws to give UTPB a chance to win it.

After taking it to the basket all night long and with only six 3-point attempts so far on the year, Word sized up his defender and sank the walk-off 3-pointer with just 0.4 seconds on the clock.

The Eagles had to throw it the length of the court and could not get a shot up with such little time on the clock.

Word led the Falcons in scoring for the fourth game in a row, finishing with 19 points on 8-for-13 shooting from the field.

After coming into the game averaging just 3.3 points per game, Taylor had the game of his life and secured 18 points on 5-for-6 shooting from three.

After scoring 12 points early in the game, Domingos finished with 17 points and matched Word by going 8-for-13 from the field.

Matthews added 11 points, dished out a team-high four assists, and matched Maison Adeleye with a team-high nine rebounds.

UTPB outscored OC 46-24 in the paint and withstood a barrage of 10 3-pointers by the Eagles, who shot 6-for-10 from three (60 percent) in the second half.

"I thought we really practiced well this week and Freddie made a huge shot for us at the end," spoke UTPB Head Coach Kyle Tolin.

In addition to keeping its 11-game winning streak against OC that dates back to the 2013-14 season alive, the Falcons improved to a strong 6-2 overall on the season and are now 3-1 in the Lone Star Conference. Oklahoma Christian, meanwhile, fell to 3-5 and 0-3.

The Falcons' next game will be on the road against Cameron University in another Lone Star Conference matchup starting at 3 p.m. on Saturday, December 14.