Box Score
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (March 7) – Seth Heckart's two early steals ignited a game-opening surge that put Central Oklahoma in control and the Bronchos scored 23 straight points from the free throw line in the final 10 minutes to upend Fort Hays State 83-68 here Friday afternoon in the quarterfinals of the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association Post-season Tournament.
Heckart had back-to-back steals and assists on Aaron Anderson layups that got UCO out to a quick 5-0 lead, Josh Gibbs drilled consecutive 3-pointers to help push that to a 13-0 advantage and the Bronchos never trailed, though the Tigers made things interesting in the second half.
It was the first win in three tries against FHSU this season, which won 101-97 in overtime and 80-79 on a last-second bucket the two previous meetings. UCO improved to 19-9 in moving into Saturday's 6 p.m. semifinals against intrastate rival Northeastern State, which upset top-seeded Central Missouri 84-82.
The finals are set for 3 p.m. Sunday, with the champion earning an automatic berth into the NCAA Division II national tournament.
"I was really proud of the way our guys played and especially the way we defended," head coach Terry Evans said. "One of our goals was to keep them out of the lane, to keep them from driving, and at the same time we wanted to go at their best players and get them in foul trouble.
"We were able to do both those things and it paid off for us. We got to the line a lot and did a great job hitting our free throws."
The Bronchos feasted at the foul line, hitting 28-of-34 attempts (82.4 percent) while FHSU tried just seven free throws, making six. UCO also had 15 assists on 23 made field goals.
Gibbs led the way with his second straight career-high outing, finishing with 34 points while making four 3-pointers and 16-of-17 charity tosses. The senior standout added five assists and two steals, though he was limited to a season-low four rebounds.
UCO led 46-32 at halftime and was up 58-43 five minutes into the second half after Anderson's coast-to-coast driving layup, but the Tigers answered with a 16-6 run to get within six at 65-59 at the 8:51 mark.
FHSU would get no closer, as Gibbs, Anderson and Bairstow combined for eight straight free throws that pushed the lead back to 14 (73-59) at 6:23. The Tigers were called for two technical falls with 5:28 left and Gibbs drained four more foul shots to make it 77-59 and the lead was 20 at 79-59 when Andrews made two charity tosses at 4:42.
The Bronchos, who made 23-of-26 free throws and just one field goal the final 15 minutes of the game, coasted in from there.
UCO got off to a quick start behind its defense, starting with Heckart's two steals that Anderson converted into a layup and a three-point play. Andrews drove in for a layup after a steal and Gibbs nailed consecutive 3-pointers from the wing off Anderson passes for a 13-0 lead barely three minutes into the game.
Heckart swished through three straight treys – two from the corner and one from the top of the key – during one two-minute sequence as the lead grew to 30-11 and it peaked at 35-13 on Andrews' long-range dagger from the corner off a Gibbs assist.
