FORT SMITH, Ark. – A barrage of 3-point shots by Ouachita Baptist broke open a close game in the second half and Midwestern State never recovered, falling to OBU, 82-73, Saturday night.
 
The loss was the third straight defeat for the Mustangs (3-4) in Fort Smith this week, including both games in the UAFS Thanksgiving Classic at the Stubblefield Center. MSU Texas, which suffered a 77-66 loss to UA-Fort Smith on Wednesday, also lost to No. 5 ranked Southern Nazarene on Friday, 77-72.
 
Against the Tigers (3-1) on Saturday, the Mustangs found themselves in a nip-and-tuck game throughout the first half and into the second half, with the game seeing 20 lead changes.
 
But with MSU leading 47-46 with 12 minutes to play, Trae Jones missed an open 3-point attempt that would've pushed their lead to four. Instead, the Tigers got the rebound and made 3-pointers on four straight possessions to push the lead up to 11 in less than two minutes of action.
 
Thanks to Jones, who came off the bench for the first time this season hit three of his four 3-pointers in the second half, the Mustangs got the lead down to two points. But down the stretch, OBU hit too many clutch baskets, and just enough free throws to keep MSU from coming back.
 
Overall, the Tigers made eight 3-pointers in the second half, finishing the game 11 of 17.
 
Bishop Coulter led the Mustangs in scoring and rebounds with 19 points and seven boards, while Jones scored 14. D'monta Harris also came off the bench to score 11 while Gilbert Thomas, Jr. had 10 points.
 
OBU's Mahlon Martin was too much for the Mustangs, scoring 20 in the second half, and finished with a game-high 28 points. Three other Tigers finished in double-figures with Wesley Franklin scoring 11 and Grant Jones and Trey Harris each adding 10.
 
The Mustangs will open Lone Star Conference play on the road next week, with a road trip to Eastern New Mexico on Thursday, followed by a matchup with defending LSC champion West Texas A&M in Canyon on Saturday.