OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLA. – Senior Soloman Thomas went for a career-high 25 points and UT Tyler turned Oklahoma Christian's 15 turnovers into 27 points to pull away for the 73-65 road victory on Thursday evening in Oklahoma City, Okla.
 
Thomas scored 18 of his 25 points in the first half, sinking half of the made baskets for the Patriots in the first 20 minutes, and then gave way to a balanced second-half scoring effort for UT Tyler. Thomas connected on 7-of-12 from the field in the opening half, four of which came from beyond the three-point line, to lead the charge for a 35-31 UT Tyler advantage at the halftime break.
 
Oklahoma Christian came back in the early stages of the second half, eventually taking a one-point lead at the 48-47 mark with 12:16 to go, but couldn't hold off a second-half Patriot offense that featured four different scorers with five or more points in the frame. Micah Fuller (14), Da'Zhon Wyche (13) and Paul Djoko (10) all joined Thomas with double-digit scoring figures on a night in which the Patriots shot 48.3 percent (28-of-58) from the field and connected on 10 three-point makes.
 
UT Tyler picked up where Thomas left off in the first half in the first few minutes of the second half and extended their lead to as many as nine at the 42-33 mark less than three minutes out of the halftime break. Oklahoma Christian didn't let the game get away from them at that point, and put their best run together of the game with a 12-3 run over the next four minutes to tie the game up at 45-45 with 13:33 remaining.
 
The Eagles then took the lead with a made three at the 12:16 mark, but three unanswered points from Djoko of the Patriots over the course of the next two possessions gave UT Tyler a lead that they wouldn't squander for the rest of the contest. The Patriot advantage stayed within a two-possession margin all the way to the 6:25 mark, before Djoko connected on a made three for three of his eight second-half points to make it 61-54 with 6:25 left.
 
Oklahoma Christian had no answer from that point forward as Fuller eventually made it a double-digit lead with a lay-up with less than two minutes on the clock to make it 69-58. UT Tyler would extend their advantage to as many as 12 in the waning minutes of the ballgame.
 
Thomas finished his career night 10-of-19 from the field and 5-of-11 from three-point range, while Fuller was 4-of-11 to finish with his 14 points. Djoko was far and away the most efficient Patriot from the field, finishing his night 4-for-5 from the field to net 10 points.
 
Junior Milan Szabo grabbed eight of the 33 UT Tyler rebounds in the game, seven more than the Eagles who finished with just 26 as a team. UT Tyler finished with 11 steals, the most for the team in a Lone Star Conference game this season.
 
The win is the Patriot's second in a row and moves the squad to 13-6 on the year and 5-5 in LSC play.
 
Saturday's previously scheduled game against UAFS has been cancelled due to inclement weather conditions in the area, making for a return trip home for the next three contests for the Patriots. UT Tyler will kick off that homestand on Thursday night against Texas A&M-Commerce at 7:30 p.m.