DURANT, OKLA. – For the first time since 1945-46 the East Central University men's basketball team has an 11-game winning streak going after claiming an 86-77 road victory over arch rival Southeastern Oklahoma State in Great American Conference action.

Photo Gallery

Senior Braxton Reeves, who was named to the 2016-17 Small College Hoops Bevo Francis Top-100 Watch List earlier in the day, lead the team with 23 points, five assists and four steals.

The Tigers (11-4, 7-2 GAC) also saw a strong performance from senior Ishmael Donzo, who tallied 21 points, nine rebounds and two assists.  Fellow senior Donovan Halsel netted 13 points, eight boards and two assists.

The game started out close, but after the first two minutes, ECU pushed the tempo to take the lead for the rest of the game.  The Tigers used a 9-0 run to push out to a 15-6 advantage.  The lead remained around six until the midway point of the half, when ECU used a 7-0 run to push the advantage out to double digits (32-20).

The Tigers kept the lead in the double-digit range until the final four minutes when the Savage Storm (6-9, 2-6 GAC) used a 5-0 run to cut the disadvantage to six (39-33).  However, ECU countered with a 5-1 run in the final minutes of the stanza to lead 44-34 at the break.

Southeastern came out fighting in the second half, going on a 6-0 run in the first 3:30 to cut the lead to four.  ECU fought back and kept the advantage between five and 10 points for the next four minutes, but then saw the Savage Storm use a 7-0 run to get within three (59-56).

The Tigers kept the score in their favor, but within two possessions through the next six minutes.  After Southeastern cut the lead to one (66-65), with 5:55 left, ECU countered with a 10-4 run over the next three minutes for a 76-69 advantage.

The Savage Storm then went on a quick 6-0 run to cut the lead back to just four, with two minutes left to play.  The teams traded shots the rest of the game, but the Tigers never let the lead go and used free throws to help claim the 86-77 victory.

Free throws were the key to the win for ECU, as they went 17-of 25 from the charity stripe and only allowed Southeastern to go 5-of-10.  The Tigers also earned a clear lead in rebounds (37-25) and shot 56.9 percent from the floor to 47.6 by the Savage Storm.

ECU will wrap up a three-game road trip, Thursday, Jan. 19 at 7:30 p.m. in Bethany, Okla., to face Southern Nazarene.