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Dec. 6, 2007

Box Score

EDMOND, Okla. - Hot shooting by the Bronchos, who connected on 14 three-point field goals as a team, and 22 Buffalo turnovers conspired to bring an end to the five-game winning streak of the West Texas A&M men's basketball team Saturday as No. 17 Central Oklahoma handed the Buffs a 90-82 defeat at UCO's Hamilton Field House. Following the setback, Buffs fall to 6-3 on the season while the Bronchos improve to 7-2.

"They shot well from the three-point line, but we also put them in position to do some things in transition with our turnovers," said head coach Rick Cooper. "At this point in the season, we are still very much a work in progress and its always tough to go on the road and win in November and December, but we hope these experiences will pay off for us later in the season."

In the losing effort, the Buffs got solid efforts from juniors Demetrice Fuller and Jon Sykes, who each made their season debuts Thursday after missing the first eight games of the year while recovering from injuries. Fuller connected on 5-of-9 field goal attempts to finish with 11 points while Sykes made 3-of-4 shot attempts for six points and added five rebounds, including three on the offensive glass.

The Buffs, who trailed 36-32 at the half, got to get their offense rolling in the second half, making 17-of-27 shot attempts in the period for a .63 shooting percentage, but Central Oklahoma was able to take advantage of a handful of WT turnovers and its own hot shooting to outscore the Buffs 54-50 in the period.

Junior Keon Grant went a perfect 6-of-6 from the free throw line to lead the Buffs in scoring with 14 points and in rebounds with nine on the night, while senior post Chris Hinz also finished in double-figure scoring with 13 points on 5-of-6 field goal shooting.

Defensively, senior post Andre Hill fell just one short of his career best in blocked shots, as he swatted four Broncho attempts in the game.

The Buffs are back in action on Saturday as they continue the road trip with a contest at Northeastern State. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m. following the Lady Buffs' contest and both games can be heard in the Amarillo/Canyon area on KGNC (710 AM).

"This is a tough road swing, playing back-to-back difficult games" Cooper added. "Northeastern is a good team and we got a chance to see them at our Thanksgiving tournament so we know that they are playing really well right now and will be a big challenge for us."