ECU men knock off host Harding
Jan. 9—SEARCY, Ark. — The East Central University men's basketball team is traveling back to Ada on a high note after a gritty 97-87 road victory over Harding University on Saturday afternoon inside the Rhodes-Reaves Field House to close out a weekend Arkansas road series.
The Tigers improved to 8-4 overall and 4-2 in the Great American Conference, while Harding dipped to 5-7 and 2-4.
"It was a good response by our guys today," said ECU men's head coach Daniel Wheeler. "Multiple guys stepped up and made key plays. Give credit to Harding. They kept throwing punches. It is always good to get a conference road win!"
After an initial back-and-forth battle in the game's opening five minutes, a layup by Malik Nash put the Tigers ahead with a 14-13 lead, a lead they would maintain for the entire first half. ECU's defensive efforts restricted Harding to only two field goals in seven minutes, allowing the Tigers to secure an 11-point lead at 29-18 with 8:08 remaining in the first half.
Although the Bisons mounted a comeback, narrowing the deficit to just one point at 33-32, timely back-to-back 3-pointers by Keyon Thomas and Mohamed Elgohary helped put the Tigers back on track until they eventually headed into the locker room with a 44-39 advantage.
In a game of runs, Harding answered back and chipped away at the ECU lead in the second half. The Bisons managed to regain the lead with a 48-47 edge, however, another crucial 3-pointer from Elgohary swung momentum back in favor of the Tigers, allowing them to build a commanding 15-point lead at 69-54 with 12:41 to go.
Despite Harding's late surge, closing the gap to within six points at 89-83 with 1:52 remaining, ECU maintained composure to seal the 97-87 win.
The Tigers dominated the glass, outrebounding Harding 40-27 and outscoring the Bisons in the paint 44-30.
Godsgift Ezedinma had a career-high night scoring 25 points and shooting 9-for-12 from the floor while grabbing five rebounds.
Keyon Thomas picked up 20 points, his sixth 20-plus game of the season, and was one assist away from a double-double with nine.
Elgohary and Bryce Woolridge contributed 14 points each, with Elgohary earning his second double-double of the season with a team-high 13 rebounds.
Rylie Marshall scored 19 points for the Bisons. He finished 8-of-14 from the field and made three dunks.
East Central made 24-of-29 (82.8%) compared to an 18-of-25 (72%) outing by the home team.
The ECU men's basketball team will return to Ada at 7:30 p.m. Thursday when Arkansas-Monticello visits the Kerr Activities Center.
