East Central Oklahoma University Men’s Basketball Outlasts Harding

Godsgift Ezedinma/Men's Basketball | East Central Oklahoma University

By Press release submission

Jan 6, 2023

After more than two weeks since their last competition, the East Central University men's basketball opened the new year with a 74-62 victory over Harding University in the Kerr Activities Center Thursday night.

ECU improved to 7-4 overall and 2-3 in Great American Conference play.

"It was a real team win tonight," Head Coach Daniel Wheeler said. "We had six guys in double figures. Multiple guys contributed in so many areas. We missed some shots and it did not effect our defensive effort."

There were 14 lead changes and _1_ ties in Thursday night's fight against the Bisons.

A dunk by Godsgift Ezedinma and a three-pointer by Barron Tanner, Jr. got the Tigers out to a quick 5-0 lead in the opening half before Harding answered back with five straight points of their own. Tied at 21-21, the Bisons regained the lead with a scoring run, but a 6-0 run in the last three minutes gave the Tigers a 28-26 lead going into the break.

The second half carried a similar pattern, with both teams fighting to maintain the lead. Harding managed to lead 45-44, but a layup by Barron at the 9:03 mark put the ECU up for good. The Tigers pulled away late in the second half and eventually secured a 74-62 win over the Bisons.

"It's a good way to start the second semester and now we need to build on it," said Wheeler.

Six Tigers scored in double figures – Godsgift Ezedinma, Barron Tanner, Jr., Keyon Thomas, Jakeem Acres, and Luke Harper.

Ezedinma and Barron each had 14 points on the night while both making five shots and adding six rebounds.

Keyon Thomas was next with 12 points going 4-for-8 from the floor. He also added four boards and three steals.

Jakeem Acres scored 11 points making 4-of-6 shots, while Luke Harper and Quinton Johnson II finished with 10 points each. Harper was 5-for-10 from the floor, and Johnson was 2-for-9 overall and 5-for-5 from the free throw line in his debut as a Tiger.

The East Central University men's basketball team will be back in action at home Saturday, Jan. 7 as they take on Arkansas Tech University at 3:00 p.m.