Box Score MONTICELLO, ARK. – The East Central University had a good start to the 2014 portion of the season, with a 66-54 win over Arkansas-Monticello at Steelman Fieldhouse in Great American Conference action.

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The Lady Tigers (7-4, 2-3 GAC) were led by senior Alycea Price, who tallied her fourth double-double of the season with 14 points and 11 rebounds.  Price was one of four ECU players with double-digits in the points column, with senior Ashley Robison adding 12, junior Erin Walling 11 and junior Dilan Webster 10.

The first half started with a 4-0 run by the Cotton Blossoms (5-5, 1-3 GAC) before ECU was able to get on the scoreboard with 16:50 left to play.  The Lady Tigers kept fighting and took their first lead with 15:35 to play after two-straight three-pointers.

The game remained tight for the next minute, with UAM taking an 8-10 advantage after the first 5:30 minutes.  That is when ECU went to work and didn't allow the Cotton Blossoms to score a field goal after the 14:22 mark. 

UAM scored four points over the next few minutes at the charity stripe, but were then held scoreless for the last 6:08 of the half.  The Lady Tigers took advantage of the slump and went on a 15-0 run in the final minutes to take a 31-14 lead into the locker room.

The second half was a much closer battle, with the Cotton Blossoms using several runs to cut the deficit down to three in the final minutes of the half.  UAM first used an 8-0 run over a three minute span to cut the disadvantage to seven (39-32).  The game was tight for the next five minutes before another 4-0 run by the Cotton Blossoms cut the lead to three (45-42), with 8:11 left on the clock.
Both teams then traded 5-0 runs over the next five minutes, resulting in a 52-49 lead for the Lady Tigers.  ECU then outscored UAM 14-5 in the final three minutes of the game to earn the 66-54 win.

The Lady Tigers earned key advantages in rebounds and shooting percentages.  ECU out-rebounded the Cotton Blossoms 40-32 and out-shot UAM 45.6 percent (26-of-57) to 34.0 percent (18-of-53).  The Lady Tigers also added a 35.3 (6-of-17) mark from beyond the arch and were a perfect 8-of-8 from the charity stripe.

ECU will remain on the road for a Saturday, Jan. 4 match-up with Southern Arkansas at 2 p.m. in Magnolia, Ark.