THE BASICS

Score: Evangel 78 – College of the Ozarks 66

Records: Evangel (2-7); College of the Ozarks (5-6)

Location: Point Lookout, Mo. – Keeter Gymnasium

POINT LOOKOUT, Mo. – A hot start for the Evangel men's basketball team saw the Crusaders earn a 78-66 win over College of the Ozarks Tuesday night in the second meeting of the Rib Crib Highway 65 Series.

Evangel led from start to finish as they jumped out to an 11-2 lead through the first three minutes of the game. The Crusaders were hot from the field shooting 61 percent in the first half before finishing at a 48 percent clip.

Junior Cody Geiger led Evangel with a season-high 23 points and nine rebounds. Geiger helped push the Crusader lead to 17 points, their largest of the game, with 16:15 in the second half after a steal by Josue Levy. The steal by Levy started a fast break with Geiger finishing as the Bobcats were forced to call a timeout.

The Bobcats would cut back into the Evangel lead but with the help of finishing 22-of-25 from the free throw line sealed the win and held off College of the Ozarks.

College of the Ozarks forced 17 turnovers, but Evangel out-rebounded the Bobcats 39-20 and held the home team to 38 percent shooting.

Marcus Miller and Nick Yocum joined Geiger in double figures as Miller finished with 12 points and Yocum added 15 including going 6-for-6 from the free throw line.

Cameron Paschke led all scorers with 25 points for the Bobcats.

The win snapped a five-game skid for the Crusaders and also snapped a five-game losing streak to the Bobcats.

Up Next
Evangel returns to Heart Conference action on Saturday as they host Grand View. Tipoff from the Ashcroft Center is scheduled for 4 p.m.

For the latest information on Evangel athletics, follow the Crusaders on Facebook at Facebook.com/EvangelAthletics or go to www.EvangelAthletics.com.

---www.EvangelAthletics.com---