SHAWNEE, Okla. — A furious second-half rally came up short Saturday as No. 7 Oklahoma Baptist held off No. 20 Ouachita 69-67 at the Noble Complex. 

The Tigers (20-6, 16-4 GAC) nearly erased a 17-point deficit and forced a turnover down by one with 37 seconds left to play, but couldn't capitalize and were forced to foul after a turnover handed possession back over to the Bison. After the Bison split the free throws, the Tigers had two more opportunities in the final seconds before a potential game-winning 3-pointer ricocheted off the rim as time expired.

The seventh-ranked Bison (24-2, 18-2) seized control during a decisive 14-0 run midway through the first half. Ouachita went more than seven minutes without a basket, until senior Devon Hancock buried a mid-range jumper, then later knocked down his third 3-pointer to trim the deficit to 10 with one minute remaining in the opening half. Oklahoma Baptist senior Jackson Greene answered with a three to send the Bison into the locker room with a 40-27 lead. Greene finished with 26 points on 11-for-20 shooting to lead the Bison to the regular season sweep. 

Hancock poured in a game-high 30 points, including 18 in the second half to mount the near-comeback. Ouachita's senior guard relentlessly attacked the rim and converted a pair of transition layups, while drawing fouls to bring the Tigers back to within 10 points down. The Tigers pounced to an 8-0 scoring run after freshman Jaxon Conley found junior Gavin Snyder open to knock down a transition three and cut the deficit to 56-53 with nine minutes left to play. 

Ouachita went five minutes without another basket after getting within one possession, while Oklahoma Baptist responded with three straight baskets from Greene. Trailing by 10 with under five minutes remaining, the Tigers mounted one final charge on a 13-4 scoring run in crunchtime. Hancock attacked with aggression to score a pair of coast-to-coast layups and senior PJ Neal delivered an assist for junior Christian Parks to hammer through the rim. After Hancock drew a foul on a shot from deep and converted all three free throws, sophomore Crew Flowers swiped a steal and finished the fast break with a layup to pull the Tigers within 68-67 with just one minute left before the final sequence. 

The Tigers return home to host Southern Arkansas for Senior Day on Thursday, with tip-off scheduled for 7:30 p.m.