Final Score – Lipscomb: 93, Central Arkansas: 81
Location – Conway, Ark. (Farris Center)
Records – Lipscomb: 16-10 (8-5, ASUN), Central Arkansas: 8-18 (3-10, ASUN)
THE SHORT STORY
Lipscomb Men's Basketball picked up a crucial road win on Thursday night, defeating Central Arkansas 93-81 behind
Jacob Ognacevic's 28 points.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Central Arkansas got out to a quick 6-0 lead with the help of a pair of triples, but Ognacevic got Lipscomb on the board with a layup.
AJ McGinnis, who made his first start as a Bison, nailed the first shot he took, a triple, to get his night started.
The Bears were hot and shooting at a high clip, connecting on six of its first seven shots for a 16-11 lead with just over 16 left in the first frame.
Central Arkansas continued to shoot the three-ball well and got out to a 19-11 lead, but back-to-back buckets from Ognacevic quickly shaved the lead 19-5.
Ognacevic connected on a free throw out of the first media timeout, but the Bears went on an 8-0 run to jump out to a 27-18 lead.
Quincy Clark came off the bench and made an immediate impact with three-straight buckets to cut the Bears' lead to a possession.
Lipscomb, however, continued to struggle to get the stops needed on the defensive end as the Bears held a 34-26 lead at the under-eight timeout.
The Bisons continued to battle and cut the lead back to four with an Ognacevic bucket.
After forcing a jump ball and regaining possession, Lipscomb cut the lead to a pair when
Matt Schner found a cutting
Derrin Boyd who laid it in.
Central Arkansas took advantage of a couple of Lipscomb fouls to convert from the line and get the lead back out to six before the final media timeout of the half for a 40-34 lead.
Lipscomb once-again cut the lead down to one with a McGinnis three, but the Bears quickly answered with a contested bucket and a three to retake a two-possession, 45-39, lead.
The Bisons again cut the lead to a pair with a
Tommy Murr bucket and got a stop, but couldn't connect on the defensive end. Central Arkansas had the ball with 32 seconds left, but Lipscomb crashed the boards on the missed shot. With four seconds on the clock, Ognacevic rose for a jumper in the paint and connected to tie the game 45-45 at the halftime buzzer.
Lipscomb took its first lead of the night on its first offensive possession of the second half when McGinnis drove the basket for a 47-45 lead.
The teams traded buckets the next couple of minutes and UCA retook the lead after making a couple free throws, but McGinnis stayed hot with a triple.
McGinnis continued to make things happen, forcing a pair of turnovers and connecting on his fourth triple of the night to give the Bisons a 61-55 lead at the first media timeout of the second half.
Out of the timeout, Ognacevic converted and and-one opportunity for a 65-55 lead.
UCA got things back within three points, but Ognacevic got the deep ball to go for a 76-70 lead with 11:08 to go.
The triple continued to fall on both ends and the Bears threatened to close the gap, but back-to-back three-pointers from
Trae Benham gave Lipscomb a 79-72 lead with 10:39 left in the second frame.
Lipscomb stretched the lead 81-72 when
Ahsan Asadullah got a layup to go, keeping the momentum in the Bisons' favor.
The Bisons continued to extend its lead with the help of yet another triple from Benham. Lipscomb continued on and held an 87-76 lead at the under-six media timeout.
The Bisons seemed in control, but a 5-0 Central Arkansas lead shaved the Lipscomb lead back to single digits, 89-81, with just over three to play.
Lipscomb's lead got back out to 10-points when the Bisons got a stop and McGinnis found Ognacevic who was wide open for a dunk.
The Bisons were able to shut things down and close out a 93-81 win on the road.
HERD NOTES
- McGinnis had a career high 16 points.
- Ognacevic had a season high and led the Bisons with 28 points.
- McGinnis and Will Pruitt had a team high seven rebounds each.
- The win marked Lipscomb's third-consecutive win and first road win since Jan. 12 at Austin Peay.
- Lipscomb shot 54.5% from the field and 44.4% from deep.
UP NEXT
Lipscomb will stay on the road and head to North Alabama for a 7:15 p.m. tipoff in Florence, Ala. On Saturday, Feb. 11.
