ADA, Okla. – The East Central University men's basketball team hosted Henderson State University for its first GAC matchup of the year, taking down the Reddies 73-53 Thursday night at the Kerr Activities Center.
 
The win improves ECU 10-8 overall and 5-7 in conference play.
 
"A really good effort by our guys tonight," Head Coach Daniel Wheeler said. "I thought we were locked in defensively and did a good job. We had multiple guys play well offensively and we really shared it as we had 17 assists from seven different guys. That's good for us."
 
The opening half saw both teams trading buckets as there were four ties in the first six minutes of play. The Tigers trailed 10-9 before two made free throws from Godsgift Ezedinma sparked a 12-0 scoring run that reclaimed the lead for good. ECU would go on to make 12-of-26 field goals for a 46.2 shooting percentage to give them a 35-26 lead at the end of the half.
 
The second half was similar to the first in that both teams were hitting their shots early on. A few short spurts from the Reddies got them within five at 41-36, but a 6-0 scoring run by the Tigers extended their lead back to double-digits which proved to be too great to come back from. In the end, a hot shooting ECU pulled away with a 73-53 win.
 
Four Tigers combined for 52 points – Quinton Johnson II, Leonard Dixon, Godsgift Ezedinma, and Keyon Thomas.
 
Johnson led with 18 points going 7-for-10 from the field while adding five rebounds and three assists.
 
Dixon was next with 13 points, going 6-for-10 from the floor. Ezedinma scored 11 points shooting 2-for-5 from beyond the arc and 5-0f-6 from the three-point line while Thomas was close with 10 points going 5-for-10 overall.
 
The East Central University men's basketball team will be back at home Saturday, Jan. 28 to take on Ouachita Baptist University at 3:00 p.m.