ADA – The first home game of the 2016-17 season for the East Central University women's basketball team was an ebb and flow for both teams, but unfortunately the Tigers went cold in the last few minutes of the game and fell to Henderson State, 72-74, in Great American Conference action at the Kerr Activities Center.
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The Tigers (1-6, 0-3 GAC) had strong showings from seniors
Whitney Stotler and
Jalyn Jackson and junior
Devon Branch. Stotler tallied a career-high 28 points, while adding five rebounds, a block and going 13-of-17 from the field. Jackson added 14 points, eight rebounds, three blocks and a steal, while Branch contributed 16 points and two assists.
Each quarter saw a different team earn a lead in scoring and resulted in a 39-38 lead for ECU at the half. The Tigers had fallen behind 15-25 after the first quarter, but then rebounded to out-score the Reddies (3-4, 0-3 GAC) 24-14, in the second quarter.
HSU then came out strong in the third quarter and out-scored the Tigers 25-16 to take a 55-63 lead into the fourth quarter.
That is where the see-saw really went into effect, with the Reddies pushing the lead out to 10 (57-67) in the first 2:30. ECU countered with a 14-4 run over the next five minutes, to gain a 72-71 lead. However, that would be all the Tigers would score in the game.
HSU hit a final shot with 1:15 left and then both teams missed several opportunities in the final minute to take control. The Reddies hit a final free-throw with three seconds left for the 72-74 final.
The Tigers had one of the strongest shooting days of the year, making 56.4 percent (31-of-55) of their shots. However, the key difference came beyond the arc, where the Reddies went 12-of-30 and ECU made just one of seven attempts on the day.
The Tigers will look to get back on track, Saturday, Dec. 3 when they host Ouachita Baptist in the final game of the 2016 portion of the season at the Kerr Activities Center. Game time is set for 1 p.m. and fans are encourage to bring an unwrapped toy to help with the Mercy Ada Toy Drive.