WEATHERFORD, OKLA. – The East Central University men's basketball team became the second team to clinch its spot at the 2017 Great American Conference Championship tournament, with a 75-62 victory over Southwestern Oklahoma State.
The Tigers (17-6, 13-4 GAC) were led by senior
Braxton Reeves, who tallied 30 points, four rebounds, four assists, two steals and a block. Freshman
Camron Talley added 13 points and senior
Donovan Halsel netted 14. Senior
KD Moore garnered a team-high eight rebounds, while adding four points and two assists.
The start of the game did not go in ECU's favor, as they fell behind 0-4 in the first two minutes. The Bulldogs (5-17, 2-14 GAC) kept pushing the tempo and had the lead out to as many as 15 (8-23), in the first eight minutes.
However, that is when the Tigers really went to work, using seven small runs in the remaining time in the half to gain its first lead (33-32), with 2:25 left to play. The teams traded triples in the final minutes and ECU went into the intermission with a 36-35 lead.
The second half was all Tigers, as ECU started the stanza on an 11-3 run in the first three minutes for a nine-point lead (47-38). The Tigers kept pushing and had the lead out to double-digits with 13 minutes left.
The Bulldogs didn't give up and then used an 8-0 run around the middle of the half to cut the lead to three (58-55). The next few minutes saw low scoring, with just a single point for each team over a four-minute span. But it was the Tigers who eventually got things going again, using an 8-0 run over the next two minutes to take a 67-56 lead.
ECU kept the pressure up and had the lead out to as many as 15 in the final two minutes before claiming the 75-62 victory.
The key to the win for the Tigers came at the charity stripe. ECU went 13-of-20 and allowed just a 6-of-11 mark by SWOSU. Both teams made 10 triples and the Tigers added three more overall shots (26-23).
The Tigers will only have a day off before their next outing, as they will host arch rival Southeastern Oklahoma State, Monday, Feb. 13 at 7:30 p.m. in the Kerr Activities Center. The game is the annual Blackout Game, where ECU fans are encouraged to wear black to show their Tiger support.
