ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – For the second time in a week, the East Central University men's basketball team made a stop in Arkadelphia, Ark., this time to face Ouachita Baptist. The Tigers (10-16, 8-12 GAC) got one step closer to the 2022 Great American Conference Tournament Championship, with a 75-63 victory at Ouachita Baptist.
Scoring
- 1st Half: 43-32
- The teams traded triples in the first minute of the stanza
- ECU then took control and kept the lead the rest of the half
- Led by as many as 13 late in the stanza
- Only allowed OUA (5-21, 3-17 GAC) to get within in two early in the period
- 2nd Half: 32-31 (75-63)
- The Tigers kept the advantage around 10 points for the first 10 minutes of the second stanza
- ECU then increased the pressure and go the lead out to as many as 21
Tiger Quick Shots
- The Tigers were led by So. Shemar Smith, who garnered his fourth double-double and second-in-a-row
- 23 pts., 11 reb., 1 assist, 10-of-14 FG, 2-of-3 3PT FG
- ECU also saw double-digit point totals from two other players
- Sr. Jalen Crutchfield: 18 pts., 4 reb., 2 assists, 2 steals, 6-of-14 FG, 4-of-10 3PT FG, 2-of-2 FT
- Jr. Ellis Lee, Jr.: 10 pts., 1 assist, 2 steals, 4-of-9 FG, 2-of-5 3PT FG
- Fr. AJ Ferguson Jr., led the team with a career-high 5 assists
- 9 pts., 5 reb., 5 assists, 1 steal, 4-of-4 FT
- The Tigers led in most of the key categories
- Rebounds: ECU 44 / OUA 32
- FG: ECU 28-of-62 (45.2%) / OUA 24-of-61 (39.3%)
- 3PT FG: ECU 11-of-28 (39.3%) /OUA 5-of-21 (23.8%)
- FT: ECU 8-of-11 (72.7%) / OUA 10-of-14 (71.4%)
- SWOSU claimed the seventh spot in the 2022 GAC Tournament Championship with a win on Monday, Feb. 21
- ECU is now one game ahead of Arkansas-Monticello and two in front of Arkansas Tech
- All three teams are fighting for the final spot in the tournament
Up Next
- The Tigers will wrap up the 2021-22 regular season at the Kerr Activities Center
- Thursday, Feb. 24 vs. Southwestern Oklahoma State – 7:30 p.m.
- Saturday, Feb. 26 vs. Oklahoma Baptist – 3 p.m.
