USAO Takes Two on Aggie Basketball

Chickasha, Okla.—Thursday night’s Sooner Athletic Conference contests on the road ended in defeat for both Panhandle State basketball teams. The Aggie women dropped their matchup with the University of Science and Arts-Oklahoma by a score of 75-59, while the men’s team took an 86-58 loss to the Drovers.

The Lady Aggies claimed an early lead 10-4 at the 7:11 mark of the first period, but would end the half down by three (30-27). Things were kept close until midway through the third period when USAO went on a 16-2 scoring stretch that would leave the Aggies trailing by 13 points going into the final quarter. Panhandle State held a double-digit deficit throughout the fourth period and walked away without adding a win on the night.

Monti Regier was big beyond the arc again, scoring 14 points on four three-pointers and two foul shots. Madison Dearmin and Hannah Faulks matched with 12 points apiece and combined for 11 rebounds (Faulks 7, Dearmin 4). Addison Munsch contributed nine points, five assists and two steals for the game. With the loss, the Aggies fall to 14-11 on the season and hold a 6-11 conference record.

Head Coach Jerry Olson sums up the men’s performance by stating, “I didn’t think we started with much energy tonight; we just didn’t play hard enough.” The Aggies went 3-10 from the field in the first six minutes of play, and found themselves down by 16 at the break (49-33). Their shooting struggles continued into the second half with Panhandle State connecting on just one of ten attempts from the field over the first seven minutes. The Aggies trailed by as much as 35 points through the remainder of the game and left with a 11-14 record for the season.

Olson added, “We came out of the second half with six out of seven stops but could not hit a shot. We had some great shots, but just couldn’t hit anything. I thought USAO played very well and really out-worked us tonight.”
For the game, DK Sumo and Jace Kerr each totaled ten points for Aggie team-highs. Jaedon Whitfield finished with nine points and a game-high of ten rebounds. Thomas Ellis and Chandler Bryer each brought in seven points apiece for Panhandle with Tyler Pate leading the team with three assists.

Both Aggie basketball teams wrap up their regular-season road tour with a Saturday meeting in Oklahoma City against Mid-America Christian. The women’s game begins at 3 p.m. with the men’s game following.