BARTLESVILLE, OKLA. – In a rematch of last year's Great American Conference Championship semifinal game, the East Central University men's basketball team got their revenge, earning a 92-82 victory over Ouachita Baptist to advance to the GAC Championship for the second time in school history.

Photo Gallery I Post Game Press Conference

The Tigers (23-7) were led by senior KD Moore, who tallied his first career double-double with career highs of 22 points and 11 rebounds.  Most of Moore's points came at the free-throw line where he went 10-of-15 for the day, while adding an assist, steal and two blocks.

Freshman Camron Talley added 22 points, while senior Braxton Reeves netted 20 points and seven rebounds and junior Brett Cannon earned 11 points.

After trading the first two shots in the opening 30 seconds, ECU caught on fire and went on an 8-0 run for a 10-2 advantage with 17:30 left to play in the opening stanza.  The Tigers kept Ouachita (14-14) in single digits through the first eight minutes of the game.  However, the in the second half of the stanza Ouachita made a push and used a 10-5 run to take a slight 29-30 lead.

The teams traded shots over the next two minutes, but in the final two of the period ECU took control and ended the half on an 11-1 run for the 44-36 lead.

The second half was a back-and-forth battle for control.  Ouachita came out firing and tied the game at 48 in the first five minutes.  The teams then traded points and runs until the final 6:35, when the game was knotted at 63.

That is when the Tigers went to work and used a 14-3 run over the next four minutes to gain an 11-point advantage.  Ouachita did not go away quietly, cutting the deficit to four (80-76) over the next minute.

In the final few minutes of the game it all came down to free throws, as ECU didn't score a field goal in the final 2:13 and were only out-scored by Ouachita 15-16 during the span.  The Tigers made the most of their trips to the charity stripe and eventually claimed the 92-82 victory.

The game was all about free throws, as ECU set GAC Tournament single game records for the most made and attempted free throws, going 36-of-49 for the night.  Ouachita added an 18-of-29 mark at the charity stripe for a combined total of 78 attempts in the game.

The Tigers will await the winner of No. 2 Arkansas-Monticello and No. 3 Arkansas Tech in the second semifinal of the day.  The GAC Championship game is set for 3:30 p.m., Sunday, March 5 in Bruin Fieldhouse.