OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. – The Roadrunner men's basketball team made run after run straight at the Oklahoma Sooners, but OU came out victorious, knocking CSU Bakersfield out of the First Round of the NCAA Tournament in an 82-68 loss. CSUB trailed by just four points with 4:18 to go in the game, but National Player of the Year candidate Buddy Hield and the Sooners got hot from outside the arc to hold the 'Runners off.

“These are my sons and I'm very proud,” said Rod Barnes, Head Coach of the 'Runners. “Their season and what they've gone through and what they've done for our administration, for our university, for our city, and I'm just proud of them.”

CSUB sprinted out to an 8-0 lead in the first moments of the game, using defense as usual to slow down the Sooners. Oklahoma responded with a run of its own to a take a 12-10 advantage, but a 7-2 stretch by the 'Runners put CSUB ahead 17-14 at the first media timeout.

The 'Runners hung tight to the Sooners in the first half, helped in part by missed free throws. The Sooners gave away easy points as the team went only 6-for-14 from the charity stripe in the opening period.

CSUB worked hard to stay out of foul trouble and used senior center Aly Ahmed's 16 points in the first half to keep up with the Sooners. OU went into the locker room with a 41-34 lead after Ahmed's three-pointer beat the buzzer to end the first half.

As relentlessly as they played the entire game, the 'Runners stormed out of the locker room with a 12-7 sprint to pull within just two points of the Sooners. Swarming defense caused multiple OU turnovers and helped CSUB close the gap time and time again.

With 11:25 to go in the second half, OU guard Isaiah Cousins hit a three-pointer to put his team up 58-48. The 'Runners went on a 17-11 run over the next seven minutes to cut the lead down to just four points. Six straight missed shots by CSUB coupled with four made baskets OU pushed the Sooner lead to 15 with 50 seconds remaining.

CSUB was unable to mount a comeback but gave one of the nation's top teams as much as they could handle. The final score of 82-68 was not reflective of the battle between the two squads as Oklahoma had to give 100-percent effort through the final whistle.

Redshirt sophomore Jaylin Airington added seven points in the second half to bring his game total to nine. The 6-foot-4 guard had the tall task of guarding OU's Hield throughout the entirety of the game and matched up well to the nation's second-leading scorer. Hield, who averages over 25 points a contest, scored 27 against the 'Runners Friday, but Airington's defense forced the OU guard to dish the ball to his teammates and make them to convert shots.

“We have to give OU credit,” said Barnes. “They are a really good team. They are really talented. Buddy is the real deal. I told him that, if I had a vote today, I don't know whether it's ESPN, SI, whatever it is, he's my 'Player of the Year' because I think he's been the most consistent player in the country this year.”

Ahmed's first-half total of 16 points ended up his game total while fellow senior Kevin Mays scored 14 against Oklahoma. Before Friday's contest, media touted a size mismatch for OU's forwards over 6-foot-4 Mays, but the native of Queens, N.Y. held his own in his final collegiate game and pulled down eight rebounds. Mays and Ahmed also pushed the 'Runners to a 33-30 advantage on points in the paint against OU's sizeable big men.

Junior Dedrick Basile contributed 13 points for the 'Runners with six assists in 29 minutes played. Cousins and fellow guard Jordan Woodard each tallied double-digit points for OU at 16 and 15, respectively.

“It's a really good feeling to see the program come all the way to this point and finally make it to the NCAA,” said Ahmed, a senior, after his final game as a 'Runner. “I promised myself that I wanted to be in the NCAA before I go back home and these guys made it come true and I couldn't thank them any more. I love them all.”

With the loss, the Roadrunners (24-9) were eliminated from the Big Dance. CSUB will return to Bakersfield with a historical milestone under its belt, boasting the school's first appearance in the NCAA DIvision I Tournament. The 2015-16 squad will also go down in the CSUB record books with the best D-1 season to date and have paved the way for future Roadrunners to come.

~GoRunners.com~