BETHANY, Okla. — Mission University received 46 points from its bench and placed three players among the game's four leading scorers, but the Patriots came up just short in a 90-87 loss to Southwestern Christian University on Thursday night.
Mission trailed 40-36 at halftime before outscoring the Eagles 51-50 during the second half. The Patriots moved to 0-3 with the three-point road loss.
Patriots Rally in Second Half
Southwestern Christian carried a four-point advantage into halftime after shooting 48.3 percent from the field during the opening 20 minutes.
Mission's offense found its rhythm after the break, scoring 51 points while shooting 42.9 percent from the floor and making six three-pointers. The Patriots also converted 15 of their 20 second-half free-throw attempts but were unable to completely erase the halftime deficit.
Southwestern Christian finished the game shooting 47.6 percent overall, while Mission connected on 39.4 percent of its attempts. Both teams made 10 three-pointers.
Bench Powers Mission Offense
Devante Watson led the Patriots with 25 points off the bench. Watson shot 6-of-11 from the field, made three of his four three-point attempts and went 10-of-12 at the free-throw line.
He also contributed six rebounds, five assists, three steals and two blocks during his 26 minutes.
Lee Williams added 21 points on 7-of-16 shooting, while Jamarian Cato scored 19 points off the bench. Williams made two three-pointers and went 5-of-7 from the line, while Cato connected on eight field goals.
Justin Gill finished with nine points, seven rebounds, three steals and two assists. Jamon Valentine added eight points and four rebounds.
Mission's reserves outscored the Southwestern Christian bench 46-19.
By the Numbers
The Patriots forced 20 turnovers while committing 14 and finished with a 22-6 advantage in points off turnovers. Mission also recorded 10 steals and held a 14-12 edge in second-chance points.
Southwestern Christian won the rebounding battle 44-40 and held a narrow 36-34 advantage in points in the paint.
Deondre Dunn led the Eagles with 39 points and nine rebounds, shooting 13-of-23 from the field and making six three-pointers.
