EDMOND, Okla. — Coming off an uncharacteristic loss at Newman, Griffon Men's Basketball hopes for a bounce-pack day against No. 7/9 Central Oklahoma on Saturday at Hamilton Field House.

KEEPING UP WITH THE GRIFFONS
KFEQ Radio will broadcast the games live on 680 AM and 95.3 FM with the "Voice of the Griffons" Tommy Rezac and Paul Smith on the call inside Hamilton Field House. Fans that want to watch the games can purchase a subscription to the MIAA network, where the games will be broadcast live. 

SCOUTING NO. 7/9 CENTRAL OKLAHOMA: JAN. 14 - 3:30 PM
First-place Central Oklahoma (15-1, 9-1 MIAA) in has now won nine in a row after defeating No. 4/4 Northwest Missouri State, 69-58, on Thursday in Edmond. The Bronchos are turning  MIAA opponents onto their heads, winning four of those games by 10 points or more, as zero of those games have been decided by a single possession. Central Oklahoma's one loss this season came way on Dec. 8, 2022, in Edmond vs. Missouri Southern, 56-50. This matchup was just five days after MWSU manhandled Southern, 79-65, in Joplin, Missouri.

Head Coach
Fourth-year man and collegiate veteran Bob Hoffman is 671-373 overall, 64-36 with UCO and 45-25 in the MIAA. Hoffman led Central Oklahoma to the 2021-22 MIAA regular-season title — the first since joining the league in 2012 — and he was named MIAA Coach of the Year following the regular season. He guided the team to the MIAA Men's Basketball Championship semifinals before earning an at-large bid to the 2022 NCAA Division II national tournament. Central Oklahoma made its 18th national tournament appearance in 2022 and the 13th since joining Division II.

Hoffman is 1-1 vs. Martin and 1-2 vs. MWSU.

Who to Watch
Sophomore guard Jaden Wells has been slicing up each defense he's come across this season, averaging an MIAA-high 19.7 PPG (335 points; first), ranking him 41st in the country. Scoring 13 points or higher in every game so far, the biggest part of his game is behind the arc, as he his shooting another MIAA-best 47.5% from deep. Senior guard Curtis Haywood is chipping in 11.9 PPG and is pulling down 6.5 RPG (seventh), as he resides with the fifth-most rebounds in all of the conference at 111. Sophomore forward Luke Haasl is a presence in the post and a pest to scorers in the paint, blocking the second-most in the MIAA with 22 rejections so far. 

Record Rabbit Hole
Since they started playing in 1991, the Griffons lead the Bronchos, 13-12. The Griffons also hold a 5-4 advantage when playing in Edmond, winning the last three matchups at Hamilton Field House. The Griffons are 2-1 all-time when playing a ranked UCO team, most recently downing the No. 13 Bronchos ...

Last Time Out
Box Score | Video Recap
... on Feb. 8, 2022, 71-68, in Edmond. Missouri Western entered the game at 8-9 overall and 4-5 in the MIAA, needing a win to stay afloat in the conference. Meanwhile, the No. 13 Bronchos were 15-3 overall and 11-1 in the MIAA and had won 15 of their last 16 games. While UCO started the game on a 21-7 run, MWSU held the Bronchos to just 14 points in the next 13 minutes to take a 36-35 lead at halftime.

Former Griffon JaQualyon Mays led all scorers with 22 points while Taye Fields scored a then career-high 20 points and snagged 11 rebounds for the second double-double of his young career. Eleven points from Eames, 12 more from Bubak off the bench and 10 boards by Thames put the Griffons in perfect position to fend off the future NCAA Tournament qualifiers. With MWSU down by one with 5:11 to play, Eames scooped home a layup to give his Griffons the go-ahead bucket and the 71-68 victory. It was UCO's first of just two home losses that season.