ADA, OKLA. – With a 92-85 victory over Arkansas-Monticello, the East Central University men's basketball team secured a spot in the 2018-19 Great American Conference Championship Tournament.

Photo Gallery

Scoring

• First Half: 42-39
  • The Boll Weevils (15-11, 11-9 GAC) opened the first five minutes on an 11-5 run
  • In the next minute the Tigers (16-9, 13-7 GAC) went on a 5-0 run to cut the deficit to one
  • UAM kept the advantage between 1-4 points for the next four minutes, with the Boll Weevils leading 21-18
  • ECU then fought back to tie the game at 21 and take a 24-21 advantage, with 9:30 left
  • The teams traded shots and runs over the next five minutes to be tied at 31
  • The Tigers used an 11-8 run in the final minutes to take the advantage at the half
• Second Half: 50-46
  • UAM started the half on a 4-0 run, in the first two minutes to regain the lead
  • ECU followed with an 8-2 run over the next two minutes for a five-point advantage
  • The Boll Weevils countered with an 8-2 run of their own to take a 53-52 lead, with 13:11 remaining
  • The teams battled through the next five minutes to knot the score at 67, with 7:43 left on the clock
  • The Tigers hit the next shot and kept an advantage between 3-5 points over the next two minutes
  • ECU kept pushing and go the lead out to 12, with 3:21 remaining
  • The Tigers kept a double digit lead until the final 35 seconds when UAM was able to cut the deficit to seven

Tiger Quick Shots

• ECU earned its sixth-straight trip to the GAC Championship Tournament
• The Tigers saw five players earn double-digit point totals
  • Jr. Camron Talley: 23 pts., 1 reb., 3 assists
  • Sr. Da'Rion King: 15 pts., 5 reb., 1 block
  • Jr. Jalan Brown: 13 pts., 2 reb., 3 assists
  • RFr. Gerren Jackson: 12 pts., 7 reb., 3 assists, 2 steals
  • RFr. Tylor Arnold: 10 pts., 3 reb., 3 assists, 1 block, 2 steals
• King returned to action for the first time since Feb. 9 at Northwestern
• ECU shot 60.4% (29-of-48) from the floor and 50.0% (7-of-14) from three-point range
  • The Tigers allowed a 47.8% (32-of-67) field goal percentage and 26.9% (7-of-26) from beyond the arc
• ECU earned the win with trips to the free-throw line
  • ECU 27-of-36 (75.0%) / SAU 14-of-17 (82.4%)

Up Next

• The Tigers will play the final game of the season at the Kerr Activities Center, Saturday, Feb. 23
  • vs. Southern Arkansas – 3 p.m.
  • Senior Day – Honor seniors Da'Rion King and Jamey Woods
• Final two regular-season games will be on the road
  • Thursday, Feb. 28 at Ouachita (7:30 p.m.)
  • Saturday, March 2 at Henderson State (3 p.m.)