Clarksville, Ark.- Tyler Mitchell, Tony Brock and Ted Beard shot a combined 75 percent from the field to push Ozarks past Rust College 80-72 on Monday in their home-opener.
The trio hit 15-of-20 from the floor en route to each scoring in double figures, with Mitchell leading the way with 17 points, and Brock and Beard each contributing 10 points. The Eagles (2-1) held a 38-32 lead at the half after hitting 50 percent from the floor. Mitchell, a freshman guard from Tulsa, hit a three-pointer with 3:30 left to give Ozarks a 33-23 cushion. Brock followed that with a three-point play on Ozarks next possession to provide the Eagles with their biggest lead of the half (36-23).
The Eagles continued their impressive shooting in the second half, hitting 16-of-26 (61%) from the floor. Rust, however, did cut it to 51-50 when Darnell Toy drained a three-pointer at the 14:09 mark. That would be as close as the Bearcats (3-3) would get as Ozarks went on an 8-0 spurt to push their lead to 58-50 after two Chris Clark free throws with 10:43 remaining. Over the next five minutes, the Eagles would build a double-digit lead to keep the non-conference contest out of reach.
Six different Eagles hit three-pointers in the game, with Beard, Ty Allen and Blake Belford each hitting two apiece.
Habeeb Kareem had a team-best 6 rebounds. Brock had 6 assists. Mitchell ended the game going 8-of-9 from the floor.
Ozarks will have three straight road games before hosting conference foe Schreiner University on December 15.
Topics: Athletics