Men's Basketball February 28, 2021

Rangers Set for First Round of GAC Tournament

ALVA, Okla.- The new season is upon us, as the Great American Conference playoffs are set to begin Monday evening. The Rangers have finished sixth in the Western Division and will take on third seed East Central Monday at 7:30 PM. The Rangers finished the regular season 3-11 overall and 1-11 in Great American Conference play. East Central finished at 9-8 in the season in conference play.

The playoff matchup will be a battle between the Ranger defense or the Tiger offense. East Central comes into the Monday game with the number three scoring offense in the Great American Conference averaging 74.6 points per game with the best field goal percentage per game at 46.5%. The Rangers though are one of the better defensive teams in the conference. The Rangers are holding opponents to just 31.5% shooting from three which is the third-best in the GAC. Northwestern leads the Great American Conference in blocked shots per game with 4.4 tied for tenth in the nation. The Red-and-Black also average 39.5 rebounds per game on the season for the GAC lead and tied for 25 in Division II.

Northwestern is led by head coach Vinay Patel, currently in his second season with the Ranger program. He is 13-29 in his two seasons and 101-85 in his collegiate tenure.

Parrish Hewitt leads the Rangers in scoring with 15.3 points per game. The 15 points are seventh in the GAC in scoring shooting 43% on the year and 40.0 from three. Deon Barrett is the other Rangers player in double figures averaging 14.0 points a night that is 15^th in the GAC. Bubba Furlong averages just under a double-double with 8.4 points per game alongside 9.6 rebounds. The 9.6 rebounds are first in the Great American Conference. Furlong has been a force on the defensive end as well leading the Great American Conference in blocks with 2.2 blocks per game for third in the nation as well. Arturro Bingham has elevated his game as of late averaging 10.5 points in his last four games. He is currently shooting 40.7% from three this season on 11-27.

East Central:
The Tigers are 3-2 in their last five games. Including their most recent win over the Rangers this past Saturday 74-66. Jakeem Acres led the charge for the Tiger offense with 19 points on the afternoon. They are now 9-8 on the season third in the Great American Conference.

East Central, led by head coach Chris Crutchfield, is in the middle of his first season with the Tigers after serving as an associate coach for Arkansas last season.

Jalen Crutchfield leads the Tigers in scoring with 14.9 points per game as one of three double-figure scorers. Crutchfield is also joined by Tylor Arnold at 12.6 points a game, Josh Apple (12.8), and Jakeem Acres (11.2). Apple is shooting 61.2% from the field which is a GAC best, also good for 22nd in the nation. Apple leads the Tigers in rebounding with 7.1 rebounds a game. Romello Wilbert is averaging three assists per game for a team-high.

History:
The Red-and-Black will look to snap their two-game losing streak against East Central this season. Jakeem Acres led the way for the Tigers with 19 points in both games this season. The first contest ended in East Central's favor on the buzzer-beater win. In the second game, the Tigers won 74-66. Hewitt finished with a Ranger high of 15 joined by two others in double figures Justin Blunt and Bubba Furlong each with 13 in game one. In game two Barrett led the way with 22 points for the Rangers followed by 16 points for Hewitt.

Northwestern is 1-4 in the last five meetings against East Central. The latest win coming back in last season February of 2020 with an 84-76 win to split last season's series. East Central leads the history between these two teams 20-26. The Rangers are 6-16 when playing in the Kerr activities center in Ada, Oklahoma. Northwestern is 1-2 in the Great American Conference Tournament while East Central is 6-6 in the GAC tournament. The Tigers went on to win the GAC championship in 2016-2017 season.

Northwestern Oklahoma State 3-11 (1-11):	East Central: 9-8, (9-8)
Points per game: 68.6 Points allowed: 73.0	Points Per game: 74.6 Points allowed: 76.4
Rebounds: 39.5	Rebounds: 35.8
Assist per game: 13.9	Assist Per Game: 11.4
Turnovers Per game:14.8	Turnovers Per Game: 12.7
Blocks: 4.4	Blocks: 2.6
Steals: 4.6	Steals: 5.4

For the latest news and updates on NWOSU Men's Basketball, follow @NWOSUAthletics on TWITTER or visit www.riderangersride.com.

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Players Mentioned

#4 Parrish Hewitt: G; 6' 3"; Senior

#1 Deon Barrett: G; 5' 10"; Senior

#5 Justin Blunt: F; 6' 7"; Junior

#22 Arturro Bingham: G/F; 6' 5"; Junior

#23 Bubba Furlong: C; 6' 9"; Senior

Players Mentioned

#4 Parrish Hewitt
: 6' 3"; Senior
: G

#1 Deon Barrett
: 5' 10"; Senior
: G

#5 Justin Blunt
: 6' 7"; Junior
: F

#22 Arturro Bingham
: 6' 5"; Junior
: G/F

#23 Bubba Furlong
: 6' 9"; Senior
: C