ADA – The East Central University men's basketball team fell 93-96 in a thrilling overtime game against Harding in Great American Conference action at the Kerr Activities Center.

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The Tigers (7-4, 3-2 GAC) were led by junior Ishmael Donzo, who tallied his first double-double of the season with career highs of 21 points and 13 rebounds, while adding three assists and one block.  Junior Braxton Reeves added 26 points and senior Stirling Thomas 13 points and seven assists.

ECU came out strong at the start of the game, going on an 8-0 run in the first two minutes.  When the Bisons (5-5, 4-1 GAC) got on the scoreboard they went on a 7-0 run to cut the lead to one.  That started a battle over the next four minutes before the Tigers pulled away with an 8-0 run to push the lead to double digits (24-13).  ECU kept the advantage around 10 points the rest of the half and went into the intermission with a 50-37 advantage.

The second half was a tight battle all the way through, with Harding using a 5-0 run over a 30 second span to cut the lead to six (59-53), with 13:30 left to play.  The Bisons kept fighting and used another 8-0 run to cut the disadvantage to one (67-66) with 10 minutes left to play.  The rest of the half saw ECU push out to a five or six-point advantage to see it cut to one. 

In the final 14 seconds, with ECU leading 90-85, Harding went on a 5-0 run to tie the game at 90 and force overtime.

The teams held each other scoreless for the first two minutes.  In the first 2:30 both teams landed one free throw, but then the Bisons took control going on a 5-2 run to earn the 93-96 victory.

The Tigers had a strong night on the glass, out-rebounding Harding 48-27, but it was a seven to 13 difference in three-point shots made that made the key difference.

ECU will look to rebound, Saturday, Jan. 9 when they face Arkansas Tech at 3 p.m. at the Kerr Activities Center.