The Eagles are Elite! Oklahoma Wesleyan punches a ticket to the NAIA Elite 8 with a 77-65 win over Baker

Oklahoma Wesleyan's magical run through the NAIA National Tournament continued Friday night, as the Eagles punched a ticket to the Elite 8 with a 77-65 win over Baker. This will be the Eagles' 4th Elite 8 appearance in program history. 

Jaden Lietzke led the way for the Eagles with a double-double: 18 pts and 12 rebounds. Derrick Talton Jr. chipped in 12.

Oklahoma Wesleyan trailed by 13 with 5:41 to go in the 1st half but battled back to get it to a 5-point deficit at halftime.

The Eagles clamped the defense down in the 2nd half, forcing multiple turnovers that led to the 12-point victory.

Oklahoma Wesleyan shot 47% from the floor (27-58), and 79% from the free throw line (19-24). The Eagles struggled from the 3-point line again, shooting just 24% (4-17).

The key to the game was turnover. OKWU forced 15 turnovers and scored 19 points off them. OKWU dominated in the paint, outscoring the Wildcats 42-18.

Oklahoma Wesleyan will take on No. 1 seed LSU-Alexandria at 7 p.m. on Saturday in the Elite 8 at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City.