Johnson Nets Big Double-Double, PNW Men Drops 90-86 Decision to OCU
Oakland City, Ind. – Senior Torrence Johnson (Chicago Heights, Ill./Chicago Hope Academy) had a huge game with 22 points and game-leading 17 rebounds, but the Purdue Northwest men’s basketball team lost 90-86 to Oakland City University (Ind.) Saturday afternoon at the Johnson Center in Oakland City, Ind. Johnson was one of five Pride players to score in double figures. However, the Mighty Oaks shot 55 percent (31-fpr-56) from the field to pick up the non-conference victory.
Sophomore Lukas Vilkovsky (Kosice, Slovakia) also had an impressive outing for PNW Saturday shooting 7-for-10 from the floor to tally 18 points as well as pulling down nine rebounds. Junior Chandler Spring (Covington, Ind./Covington) had 12 points and team-best five assists, while freshman Richard Robertson (Fort Wayne, Ind./Fort Wayne Northrop) and junior Jai Wright (Richmond, Ind./Richmond) added 11 and 10 points, respectively.
The game started off tight in the opening minutes and five straight points by senior guard Tyree Coe (Fishers, Ind./Fishers) helped PNW build a four-point lead, 17-13, with 13:15 remaining in the first half. However, the Pride went cold from the field over the next five minutes of play and OCU capitalized with a 16-2 run to go ahead, 29-19. The Pride went on a run of their own and cut the deficit to three, 39-36, on a three-pointer by Spring with 4:09 left before halftime. The Mighty Oaks finished the period strong and took a 48-40 lead into the break.
OCU pushed its lead up to 13 points (58-45) early in the second half, but the Pride stormed back and pulled within two, 60-58, on a put-back by Johnson with 12:23 to play. PNW kept it close and a jumper by Robertson with 5:35 remaining gave Purdue Northwest its first lead, 76-75, since the 12-minute mark of the first half. A lay-up by Johnson tied the game at 81-81 with three minutes left to play, but the Mighty Oaks answered with a three-pointer to take the lead for good. Critical turnovers by PNW down the stretch helped OCU build a six-point lead (88-82) with 25 seconds to play.
Purdue Northwest (0-5 overall) begins Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) play on Thursday, November 30, heading up to Grand Rapids, Mich., to take on Davenport University (Mich.). The game is scheduled for a 6:30 p.m. CT start at the DU Student Center in Grand Rapids.