ADA – The East Central University men's basketball team moved to 2-0 after claiming a 58-54 win over Harding at the Kerr Activities Center in Great American Conference action.

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The Tigers (2-0, 2-0 GAC) were paced by junior Gabe McKenzie, who tallied 14 points, seven rebounds and two assists.  Senior Brett Cannon added 13 points and eight boards, while junior Marcus Lytle netted 11 points and five rebounds.

The Bisons (0-2, 0-2 GAC) took an early 4-0 lead in the first three minutes, before ECU was able to get on the scoreboard.  The teams traded points and runs over the next eight minutes, resulting in an 11-all tie.  Both teams were scoreless for the next minute, but that is when the Tigers went on an 11-2 run over the next three minutes to increase the lead to nine (22-13).

ECU increased the lead to as many as 11 points (28-17), before Harding used a 6-2 run to cut the lead to seven (30-23) at the half.

The second half started as a tight battle, with the teams trading points and runs.  The Tigers were leading by seven (40-33), with 13:16 left when the Bisons started to fight back.  Harding went on an 8-0 run to take their first lead since the first half (41-40), with 9:29 left to play.

The teams continued to trade shots for the next five minutes, resulting in a 51-all tie.  Both teams then went cold for the next two minutes before sophomore Camron Talley broke the stalemate with a triple on an assist from Cannon.

That would be all ECU would need for the rest of the game, as they pushed the lead to as any as five before earning the 58-54 win.

The Tigers will now hit the road for the next three games, starting Tuesday, Nov. 21 at 4 p.m. against Central Missouri at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo.