Reddies Set for First Battle of the Ravine of 2026

2025-26 Men's Basketball Game Notes

ARKADELPHIA, Ark. -- Henderson State men's basketball returns to road action Thursday with the first iteration of the basketball Battle of the Ravine of the 2025-26 season. The Reddies travel across Highway 7 for a 7:30 p.m. matchup with Ouachita Baptist.

Henderson State struggled in their toughest homestand of the season last week, a triple overtime loss to Southern Nazarene and a loss to Oklahoma Baptist. The Reddies look to bounce back Thursday with their first matchup of the season with Ouachita Baptist. Henderson looks for its first win against OBU since February of 2023, a 62-59 win at the Duke Wells Center.

As has been the case with nearly every sport, Henderson and Ouachita are separated by just three games in the all-time history of the intra-city series. The Reddies are 16-15 against the Tigers in the Great American Conference era.

Over the last four games, HSU is shooting just 10-53 from three-point range, highlighted by a 1-9 effort in Saturday's loss to Oklahoma Baptist. The Reddies are currently 12th in the league in both made three-pointers (67) and three-point field goal percentage (28.8 percent). However, HSU still ranks second in the GAC in total offense, scoring 76.6 points per game.

Henderson is starting to assert itself as a great shot blocking team. The Reddies rank 22nd in Division 2 with 4.7 blocks per game and boast the fourth and seventh-best shot blockers in the league in Tyson Whybrew and Jabari West.

Scouting (RV) Ouachita Baptist

Ouachita Baptist comes into Thursday's game on the heels of its first conference loss, a Thursday loss to Oklahoma Baptist. The Tigers sit alone in first place in the GAC after a 9-1 start and are receiving votes in this week's NABC poll.

The Tigers have been an excellent defensive team this year; they rank third in all of Division 2 in scoring defense, yielding just over 60 points per game. They also rank seventh in the country in field goal percentage defense: Ouachita allows teams to shoot just 38.2 percent from the field and 28.4 percent from three-point range.

Ouachita Baptist relies on the offense of Devon Hancock, who ranks third in the GAC scoring just over 18 points per game. Hancock also ranks third in the league in made three-point field goals. The Tigers are led on the glass by Christian Parks, whose 7.1 rebounds per game rank third in the conference; Parks also leads the league in blocks with 40 total, averaging 2.5 per game.

Tigers coach Dennis Nutt is in his 15th season as head coach at Ouachita. Saturday's win against Southern Nazarene was Nutt's 200th win as head coach. The former NBA guard came to Ouachita Baptist following stints as an assistant at Texas State, Coastal Carolina, Arkansas State, and Westark Community College (now UA-Fort Smith).

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Players Mentioned

#1 Jabari West: F; 6' 8"; Junior

#15 Tyson Whybrew: F; 6' 6"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#1 Jabari West
: 6' 8"; Junior
: F

#15 Tyson Whybrew
: 6' 6"; Junior
: F

Players Mentioned

#1 Jabari West

#15 Tyson Whybrew

Players Mentioned

#1 Jabari West

#15 Tyson Whybrew

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