Men's Basketball 2/18/2022 10:21:00 AM Chris Brannick

No. 18 Central Oklahoma Visits Northeastern State

TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – No. 18 Central Oklahoma wraps up a three-game road trip Saturday with an MIAA rivalry game at Northeastern State. Tipoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.

Central Oklahoma is 21-4 this season and has a 16-3 record in the MIAA. The Bronchos are currently in second place in the league standings with three games left in the regular season. UCO is ranked No. 18 in the country in the latest national coaches' poll and the Bronchos are 24th in the country in the latest national media poll.

Northeastern State 13-12 overall this season and has an 8-11 record in the MIAA. The Riverhawks are tied for ninth in the league standings.

The top 10 teams in the MIAA after next Saturday will all convene in Kansas City for the 2022 MIAA Basketball Championships March 2-6.

"We played really well earlier this week and we need to play at that level again on Saturday," UCO head men's basketball coach Bob Hoffman said. "We had to fight for it in a tough environment and I think Saturday is going to be the same. We're at the point in the year every game is going to be a little more intense."

UCO beat NSU 80-65 in Edmond last month. The win gave the Bronchos a 94-54 lead in the all-time series dating back nearly 100 years. It also snapped a five-game losing streak against Northeastern for the Central Oklahoma.

UCO has the highest scoring team in the MIAA. The Bronchos average 83.2 points per game. UCO is also one of the best shooting teams in the league. Central averages 50.2 percent from the floor this season, 38.2 percent from 3-point territory, and 79.4 percent from the free-throw line.

The Bronchos on defense allow 70.2 points per game and hold opponents to 42.2 percent shooting from the floor overall. Opponents shoot 31.3 percent from behind the 3-point line, making 9.1 per game against UCO, and 67.0 percent from the free-throw line, making 10.2 per game against the Bronchos.

Central Oklahoma is led by Isaiah Wade. The senior forward is averaging 19.1 points per game this season and 8.5 rebounds per game. Both marks lead the Bronchos. Wade also shoots a team-best 58.6 percent from the floor. He was named to the Small College Basketball Top 50 Watchlist for the Bevo Francis Player of the Year Award earlier this week.

Jaden Wells has moved up to No. 2 on the team in scoring. The second-year freshman scored a career-high 32 on Wednesday night in a win at Rogers State. He hit seven 3-pointers in a game for the third time this season. Wells averages 14.6 points per game and has made 77 3-pointers this season. He is third in the league in made threes and leads the MIAA in 3-point field-goal percentage at 44.8 percent.

Wells also has the top mark in Division II in free-throw percentage at 95.4 percent, having made 62 of 65 attempts from the stripe this season.

Callen Haydon is averaging 14.4 points per game this season and contributes just as much with 6.1 assists per game. He ranks seventh in the country in assists and leads the MIAA.

Haydon shoots 47.1 percent overall, 36.3 percent from the behind the 3-point line, and 90.8 percent from the free-throw line. He is also among the league leaders in free-throw percentage.

Camryn Givens is the third Broncho averaging 14 points per game. He is scoring 14.2 points per game and also averages 5.2 rebounds per game. Givens has been steadily approaching 1,000 career points. He's scored 954 points since 2019. He could become the 43rd member of the 1,000-point club at UCO.

Preston Aymond and Davon Richardson lead the second unit. Aymond averages 8.0 points and 4.4 rebounds per game this season and Richardson averages 5.3 points and 3.1 rebounds per game off the bench.

Jalyn Turner is Central's fifth starter and the do-it-all forward averages 3.6 points and 2.0 rebounds per game. Carson Calavan adds 3.0 points per game and 3.0 assists per game.

Northeastern State is led by a pair of 15-point scorers. Emeka Obukwelu averages 15.2 points per gae and leads the team with 8.3 rebounds per game. Christian Cook averages 15.0 points per game and has a team-high 47 made 3-pointers.

Central Oklahoma is scheduled to wrap up the 2021-22 regular season next week in Edmond. The Bronchos will host Central Missouri on Wednesday before welcoming Missouri Southern to Hamilton Field House on Saturday.

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Players Mentioned

#13 Carson Calavan: G; 5' 11"; Sophomore

#33 Camryn Givens: F; 6' 6"; Junior

#10 Jalyn Turner: F; 6' 6"; Sophomore

#2 Isaiah Wade: F; 6' 7"; Senior

#1 Davon Richardson: G; 6' 3"; Freshman

#24 Jaden Wells: G; 6' 1"; Freshman

#14 Callen Haydon: G; 5' 11"; Junior

#23 Preston Aymond: F; 6' 7"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#13 Carson Calavan
: 5' 11"; Sophomore
: G

#33 Camryn Givens
: 6' 6"; Junior
: F

#10 Jalyn Turner
: 6' 6"; Sophomore
: F

#2 Isaiah Wade
: 6' 7"; Senior
: F

#1 Davon Richardson
: 6' 3"; Freshman
: G

#24 Jaden Wells
: 6' 1"; Freshman
: G

#14 Callen Haydon
: 5' 11"; Junior
: G

#23 Preston Aymond
: 6' 7"; Freshman
: F