ADA – The East Central University men's basketball team sent its two seniors out in style, with a 91-83 win over Southern Nazarene in the final regular-season game of the 2014-15 season at the Kerr Activities Center. The win helped secure the No. 2 seed at the 2015 Great American Conference tournament next week.
Photo Gallery"I am happy for our seniors to go out on a winning note," said head coach Ja Havens. "They have done a lot to help raise the expectations for our program over the last few years, representing us both on and off the court."
The Tigers (18-9, 12-7 GAC) were led by senior
Henry Pwono, with 22 points, six rebounds, two assists, two steals and two blocks. Junior
Stirling Thomas added 21 points, six boards and three assists.
"I am really proud of the way the team competed especially after we got off to such a slow start," Havens added. "They did a great job of clawing back to get the lead and establish a presence in the paint in the second half.
ECU got off to a slow start, allowing the Crimson Storm (13-13, 9-11 GAC) open the game with a 12-0 run in the first seven minutes. The Tigers slowly crawled back into the game throughout the half, using several small runs to keep it within a 10-point disadvantage. Then in the final four minutes of the half, ECU turned up the momentum and used a 13-0 run to take a 30-27 lead into the locker room.
The second half was much closer with several tie scores in the first 2:30 minutes before the Tigers took control again. ECU put together a 12-1 run over the next four minutes to take a 49-38 lead. SNU kept pushing and cut the advantage to five with a 6-0 run over a minute.
The Tigers countered with a 10-0 run to push the lead back to double digits until 7:30 minutes remained. The Crimson Storm again added a 5-0 run to cut the deficit to seven. The Tigers kept pushing and kept the advantage between six and 10 points the rest of the half on the way to 91-83 victory.
The teams will meet again quickly as they are slated to face each other in the 2015 GAC Tournament, Friday, March 6 at 2:15 p.m. at Bruin Fieldhouse in Bartlesville, Okla.
