STEPHENVILLE, Texas (March 16) ? Brian Walker made back-to-back 3-pointers to put Central Oklahoma in the lead for good and the No. 21-ranked Bronchos pulled away down the stretch to down Northwest Missouri 73-59 in the semifinals of the NCAA Division II South Central Regional here Sunday.
UCO overcame a 14-point first-half deficit in winning its eighth straight game and moving into the regional finals for the first time since 1998.
The Bronchos, now 27-5 and winners of 18 of their last 19, face tournament host and No. 15-ranked Tarleton State in Tuesday's 7 p.m. finals for a berth in the Elite Eight. UCO won its only regional title in 1992.
UCO trailed 21-7 midway through the first half, battled back to take a 28-26 halftime lead and the second half was a see-saw affair until Walker drained consecutive treys to turn a 56-54 deficit into a 60-56 lead with 2:33 left to play.
The Bronchos then pulled away at the free throw line, making 11 of 14 charity tosses the rest of the way while the No. 19-ranked Bearcats missed six of their last seven shots and two free throws.
“It was a heavyweight fight tonight with two good teams,” UCO coach Terry Evans said. “I have a ton of respect for Northwest and the MIAA. They came out swinging first, but our guys kept fighting and before you know it we were ahead.
“We've been a total team all year. The guys don't care about minutes. They have bought into the team concept and it's really helped in the LSC tournament and the regional when you play three games in four days. Hopefully it helps Tuesday.”
UCO had a huge 33-4 edge in bench scoring, getting double-digit efforts from Eric Cazenave (14 points), Michael Sosanya (10) and Walker (10) as that trio combined to make 12-of-18 field goals and all six foul shots.
Sam Belt had a team-high 15 points for the Bronchos while also hauling down a game-best 11 rebounds.
The No. 19-ranked Bearcats jumped out to a 5-0 lead a minute into the game and owned a huge 21-7 advantage with 10:43 left in the half.
UCO answered back with an 11-1 run, getting four points from Belt, a 3-pointer from Lance Harper, a layup from Cazenave and a Walker jumper to tie it 23-23 and took a 28-25 lead moments later on a Belt trey.
The Bronchos led 28-26 at the break, but NWMSU hit a 3-pointer to open the second half and move back in front to start a back-and-forth final half. There were 12 lead changes and 10 ties in the second half, with neither team able to build more than a four-point lead.
The Bearcats led 56-54 when a Walker 3-pointer put UCO in front 57-56 with 3:22 to play and the senior followed a NWMSU miss with another long-range bucket to make it 60-56 at the 2:33 mark.
Free throw accuracy kept the Bronchos safely in front the rest of the way, with Belt making five foul shots and Cazenave all four of his attempts as UCO pulled away.
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