John Brown's trouble with inconsistency reared its ugly head again Thursday night.
The Golden Eagles got out to a hot start against Mid-America Christian, taking a double-digit lead in the first half. But JBU couldn't sustain it in the second half as the Evangels maintained their hold on first place in the Sooner Athletic Conference with an 84-74 victory inside Bill George Arena.
JBU, which shot 16 of 28 (57 percent) from the field in the first half, including 7 of 14 (50 percent) behind the 3-point line, struggled in the second half, hitting only 13 of 31 (41 percent) shots overall and 4 of 15 from behind the 3-point line.
Meanwhile, MACU matched JBU's first-half numbers shooting 16 of 28 from the field in the second half. The Evangels (17-8, 10-3) led by as many as 18 points in the final 20 minutes. JBU cut the lead down to six in the final two minuts but couldn't get any closer.
The big blow for JBU (14-11, 6-7) was a five-minute stretch in the second half where the Golden Eagles went scoreless and the Evangels went on a 16-0 run turning a 46-44 deficit into a 60-46 lead.
"We keep having stretches where we just lose our focus," said JBU head coach Jason Beschta. "If we miss some shots offensively, we still have to get stops. We're just not putting any of that emphasis on our defensive end. I don't know where the focus goes. For some reason, we just lose it and we don't care on defense. All the things we've prepared for, we know what to guard, all their actions, we guarded it in the first half pretty decent. In the second half it was like we'd never seen it before."
JBU entertained its fans with an exciting first half, which included a pair of dunks from Max Hopfgartner and Griffin Brady, and the Golden Eagles also hit seven 3-pointers.
D.J. Feitl opened the second half with a 3-pointer to put JBU ahead 44-39, but the Golden Eagles would hit only one of their next 10 shots and turn the ball over four times.
"JBU came out and shot the ball just extremely well," said longtime MACU coach Willie Holley. "We just could not get up on their shooters to keep them from shooting the ball that well. So we switched it up a bit, and it just so happened to come out in our favor."
Holley, who's in his 42nd and final season as head coach at MACU and got career win No. 805, said the Evangels changed up their defense to try and force John Brown into some mistakes.
"We knew we had to get the tempo up," Holley said. "We have to use the whole floor in order to be successful. We did. We extended the floor. We went to a little pressure-zone type tracking situation. That helps us keep moving and puts a little more pressure on your shooters to have to release the ball a little quicker and move the ball a little quicker."
It also got the Evangels going on offense.
Semar Farris scored 11 of his game-high 26 points in the second half, and Chris Runnels had 10 of his 16 in the second half.
Jarius Wilson added 14 points for MACU, while Brock Hunter scored 11 for the Evangels, who completed the season sweep of JBU.
"These kids play hard," Holley said. "They play well together. It seems when they have to, they dig a little deeper. That's the key I think. The SAC is so balanced, and every night you've got to come out and you've got to play and find something extra along the line. On the road it's just tough."
John Brown finished with five players in double figures led by Brady's 16 points. Hopfgartner had 14 points, while Feitl had 13, Samson Olayemi 12 and Zach English 10. The Golden Eagles had 21 turnovers, while MACU only had 10 turnovers.
The Golden Eagles returned to action on Saturday at home against Texas Wesleyan. Results were not available at presstime.
JBU hosts Wayland Baptist on Thursday at Bill George Arena.
Mid-America Christian 84, JBU 74
Mid-America Christian 39 45 -- 84
John Brown 41 33 -- 74
Mid-America Christian (17-8, 10-3): Farris 26, Runnels 16, Wilson 14, Hunter 11, Smith 6, Massenburge 5, Nwisienyi 4, Davis 2.
John Brown (14-11, 6-7): Brady 16, Hopfgartner 14, Feitl 13, Olayemi 12, English 10, Ledford 5, Erickson 2, Anderson 2.
Sports on 02/15/2015