LAWTON, Okla. – Lubbock Christian used big three-point shooting and defense down the stretch to survive a 77-74 scare in overtime against Cameron on Saturday, Jan. 28.

After both teams traded buckets early, Cameron opened a 7-0 run, thanks to a three ball from Colt Savage, before Jaden Okon scored the next four points for the Aggies. Four straight makes from the free throw line by Aaron Gonzales and Rowan Mackenzie ended the run, but a DeSean Munson layup pushed Cameron in front 11-8 with 13:15 left in the first half.

A Mackenzie layup cut the lead back down to one, but Caylen Goff-Brown answered with a three to swell the advantage to 14-10. Mackenzie then connected on an old-fashioned three-point play for the Chaps, his seventh straight point, and the deficit fell to 14-13 with 11:24 remaining in the opening stanza.

The two foes traded the lead again for a bit, before a Munson dunk sparked an outburst for the Aggies, and a three from Reggie Prudhomme put Cameron ahead 21-17 at the under-8 media timeout. Another three from Goff-Brown slid in for the Aggies, and Cameron swelled the lead to 24-19 with 6:00 left in the first.

With 5:56 left in the first half, Kendall Dow connected on the first make from long distance for the Chaparrals. A pair of makes from the free throw line by Fletcher MacDonald tied the game, and then both teams went cold until the final minute of the first half. Dow hit another three with 51 seconds left, before Okon drained a jumper eleven seconds later to tie the game at 28 apiece. Dow drained his third straight three-pointer with four seconds left in the opening stanza, and LCU headed into the locker room on top 31-28.

After a three by Savage to open the second half for the Aggies, Gonzales answered with a make from deep of his own. Russell Harrison kept Cameron at bay, first hitting a two-point shot from just inside the arc, before a three-pointer forced the Aggies to call a timeout down 43-34 with 14:08 left in the contest.

LCU continued to connect from three-point land in the second half, as Mackenzie nailed a shot from deep. Okon answered with a dunk to give Cameron some momentum, and a Jaylan Thomas jumper cut the Lubbock Christian lead down to 46-42 with 10:17 remaining.

Mackenzie answered with a mini 6-0 run by himself, as an old-fashioned three-point play and then a make from beyond the arc put the Chaps back ahead 52-42 with 8:08 left in the game. Taylor Cox kept the Aggies alive with a make from deep, and Cameron trailed by just seven points at the under-8 timeout.

Another triple from Prudhomme made it a one-possession game with 6:10 remaining, but Karhan Jones drove down the lane to put the Chaparrals ahead 58-51 with 4:35 left in the second half. Prudhomme answered with a layup of his own, and the Aggies remained in striking distance, down 58-53 with just 3:37 left in the game.

Thomas drained a triple to get Cameron within two, and Okon made one of two free throws to cut the lead down to just 58-57 with 2:00 remaining. After four offensive rebounds in one possession, Gonzales fired up a prayer that went down from three-point land, before Thomas answered with a layup of his own with 39 seconds left to make it a 61-59 game.

After a foul by Harrison, Okon nailed two free throws to tie the game at 61 with 24 seconds remaining. Harrison got a look at the buzzer, but it would not go, and the two teams headed to overtime.
Gonzales opened the overtime period for the Chaps with another three to put LCU on top 64-61. Goff-Brown made two shots from the charity stripe, but Mackenzie could only make one, and the Chaparrals went up 65-63 with 3:17 remaining in OT.

Both teams traded singles from the charity stripe before Cox nailed a three to put Cameron ahead 67-66 with 2:33 left in the extra frame. Harrison answered the call at the free throw line, making two shots to give a 68-67 lead back to the Chaps with 1:51 remaining. Okon again went to the free throw line, making one shot and tying the game at 68.

With 1:24 remaining in overtime, Mackenzie drained a step-back three to give LCU a 71-68 lead. After two more free throws by the Aggies, Najeeb Muhammad scored his first points of the game with a three of his own, and Lubbock Christian went ahead 74-70 with 21 seconds left in overtime.

Goff-Brown was called for an offensive foul, turning the ball over to the Chaparrals. After Muhammad made one free throw, the Aggies made a quartet of shots from the line to cut the score down to 75-74 with 14 seconds remaining in OT.

Wegscheider came up clutch for the Chaps, beating the press to put Lubbock Christian ahead 77-74 with five seconds left. Cameron had one last look at the buzzer, but the shot was off target and the Chaparrals held on for the 77-74 win.
 
Mackenzie finished with 22 points and three rebounds, along with a steal. It's the third straight game that the junior has scored at least 20 points.

Muhammad finished with just four points, but pulled down a season-high 10 rebounds and dished out five assists. Harrison finished with 17 points and three rebounds. Gonzales also finished in double figures, scoring 13 points and hauling in five boards.

Lubbock Christian returns home to the Rip Griffin Center on Thursday, Feb. 2 to face no. 21 Angelo State. Tip-off is set for 7:30 PM. Fans can purchase tickets at lcuchaps.com