Setting the Stage
     Many headlines will be in play when the Southwestern Oklahoma State University basketball team hosts longtime rival Northwestern Oklahoma State on Saturday night in the Bulldogs first game at the new Pioneer Cellular Event Center. The first-place Bulldogs will open the arena in a rivalry game that has taken on new life the past two years as the Rangers transition to NCAA Division II and join the Great American Conference.
     Saturday's game will also be the first time that first-year SWOSU coach
Bob Battisti faces Northwestern Oklahoma State, a school he spent 25 years at as the head basketball coach and athletic director. He will lead his Bulldog squad up against the defending GAC co-champions from Alva, who have sputtered this season and enter the game at 5-10.
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The Coaches
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Bob Battisti is the 14th head men's basketball coach in SWOSU history and in his first season on the Bulldogs sidelines. He most recently spent two seasons as an assistant coach at Oklahoma Christian University where he helped the program its first postseason basketball title in 30 years. Prior to his stint at OCU, Battisti spent 25 years at Northwestern Oklahoma State, coaching the men's basketball team for 21 seasons before taking over as the school's athletic director for four years. In more than 24 years as a head coach, Battisti has a career record of 420-300.
     Andrew Brown is in his seventh season as the head men's basketball coach at Northwestern Oklahoma State and his 14th year overall at the school. A full-time assistant at Northwestern from 2004-07, Brown replaced current SWOSU coach
Bob Battisti as the Rangers head man in the fall of 2007 and he has a record of 103-87 to date at Northwestern.
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Last Time Out
     For the second straight game, the SWOSU men's basketball team overcame a large first-half deficit and continued their winning streak, which has now reached six games following an 83-77 victory over Southern Nazarene on Thursday evening.
     Southern Nazarene took a 15-point lead early, going on top of the Bulldogs 23-8 with 11:34 to play in the first half on a three-pointer by CJ Smith, the Great American Conference's leading scorer. SWOSU managed to get the deficit within 10 at the break as they trailed SNU 45-36 after the opening half.
     The Bulldogs outscored SNU 13-4 over the first 6:33 of the second half, tying the game at 49-49 on a pair of free throws by
Gary Inglett. SNU weathered that storm and held on to the lead until the
Rod Camphor got out on a fast break for a lay-in that gave SWOSU a 62-61 advantage, their first of the game.
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Kenyan Borders hit a pair of big three-point baskets down the stretch, including one that gave SWOSU a 70-68 lead, and Inglett and
Trent Washington scored back-to-back baskets to break a 70-70 tie and give SWOSU the lead for good as the game went under the four-minute mark.
     Camphor – who left the game briefly in the first half due to injury – returned on a mission, tying his season-high with 27 points and grabbed eight rebounds while Inglett notched his sixth double-double of the season with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Washington came off the bench to score 16 points on 5-of-14 shooting and Borders continued his steady play at the point, scoring 14 points and dishing out six assists without committing a turnover.
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Last Time vs. Northwestern Oklahoma State (February 28, 2013)
     After seeing a 15-point second half lead whittled away and the game tied at 58-58 in the final minutes,
Rod Camphor took control of the rivalry game between Southwestern Oklahoma State and Northwestern Oklahoma State on Thursday evening at Rankin Williams Fieldhouse.
     Northwestern tied the game for the first time at 58-58 on a lay-in from Bruce Wright with 2:29 to play, but Camphor responded with two free throws on the ensuing SWOSU possession that put the Dawgs back on top 60-58.
Michael Bradley swatted a Jonathan Freemyer shot on the Rangers next possession, giving SWOSU the ball back with just under two minutes to play.
     That was when Camphor put his signature on the long-standing rivalry between the two schools by hitting a long-range 3-pointer as the shot clock expired, extending the lead to 63-58 with 1:23 to play and sending the raucous crowd of 1,567 at Rankin Williams Fieldhouse into a frenzy of jubilation.
     The home crowd played a large part in providing the Bulldogs energy throughout the game, especially in the beginning as SWOSU jumped on top 12-0 to open the game and held a lead as high as 14 in the first half at 28-14 with 5:43 to play. NWOSU finished the half on an 8-2 run, however, putting them within striking distance at 30-22 at the break.
     The Rangers came out hot in the second half, getting back-to-back three's from Wright and Brandon Wooley to get within two at 32-30 just two minutes into the half. From there, SWOSU went on an 8-2 run over the next three minutes which was halted after a technical foul was assessed to Camphor. That technical foul, which counted as the third personal on Camphor, brought the junior from Baltimore to life. He scored the next five points for SWOSU, including a monstrous jam off a stolen inbounds pass that really re-energized the Bulldogs.
     Camphor led the Bulldogs with 21 points, including 18 in the second half and 16 after picking up the technical foul. He needed just eight field-goal attempts to reach that number, knocking down six of them, including 3-4 shooting from long range.
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Checking the Standings
     SWOSU, now riding a six-game conference winning streak, continues to hold an advantage of two games in the loss column on the rest of the Great American Conference. The Bulldogs improved to 8-1 in conference play on Thursday and now East Central and Arkansas Tech are the only teams in the GAC with just three conference losses. On the flip side, SWOSU will be facing a Northwestern team that has lost two straight and is tied with Southeastern Oklahoma State for 10th place in the conference at 2-7.
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Streaking for Six
     Thursday night's win at Southern Nazarene was the sixth consecutive for SWOSU, giving the Bulldogs their longest winning streak since early in the 2010-11 season. A seventh consecutive victory on Saturday night against Northwestern Oklahoma State would give the Dawgs their first seven-game win streak since opening the 2007-08 season 9-0.
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Scouting the Opponent
     Northwestern Oklahoma State is 5-10 on the year and 2-7 in Great American Conference action after dropping five of their six games since the first of the year. Most recently, the Rangers were swept at home by Ouachita Baptist and Henderson State after earning a victory over Southeastern Oklahoma State the previous week.
     The Rangers are the lowest scoring team in the GAC, averaging just 65.3 points per game during their 15 games this season. Bruce Wright is the top scorer for Northwestern, averaging 13.9 points per game and he also lead sthe teamin rebounding with 6.9 boards per contest. Adrian Motley is the other top scorer for NWOSU, chipping in 10.5 points per game.
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Quick Hits
- SWOSU and Northwestern Oklahoma State split the season series last season, with both teams winning on their home court
- The Bulldogs have overcome a double figure deficit to earn victories in each of the past two games
- SWOSU has scored 72 or more points in each of the past three games, upping their season scoring average to 71.1 points per game
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Gary Inglett recorded his sixth double-double of the season on Thursday, scoring 14 points and grabbing 11 rebounds against SNU.
Rod Camphor (21 pts, 10 reb vs. Hillsdale Baptist, 12/30) is the only other Bulldog to secure a double-double
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Kenyan Borders set new career highs with 6 assists and 5 rebounds against SNU
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Looking Ahead
     The Bulldogs have two more games at the Pioneer Cellular Event Center next weekend, hosting Southern Arkansas & Arkansas-Monticello before finishing with five of eight games away from home.
