The men’s basketball team battled past Arkansas Tech University (ATU) for the second time this year, 79-76 on Monday, Feb. 15, to stay in the hunt for the Great American Conference (GAC) title heading into the final stretch of the regular season.
The Bisons used a combination of balanced scoring, timely hustle plays and three-pointers to hold off the Wonder Boys and sweep the season series against their rival. Head coach Jeff Morgan said the team’s multiple scoring threats are a byproduct of its unselfish play.
“We just play good team basketball, and I think that’s what we’ve always tried to do,” Morgan said. “These guys do a great job of sharing the basketball and do a great job of working together to produce great shots. They understand what each other does best. They understand how to put guys in a place to be successful, and it’s fun to watch and fun to be a part of.”
After jumping out to an early 20-6 lead, the Bisons got into foul trouble and found themselves down 35-33 at the halftime break after a 17-5 ATU run in the final seven minutes of the half. Hot shooting from senior guard Blake McNair, who hit three of the Bisons’ 11 three-pointers in the first four minutes of the half, ignited the Harding offense to start the second period. They raced out to a lead they would not relinquish again as they withstood another late Wonder Boys run.
Senior guard Jacob Gibson and junior guard Will Francis both chipped in 18 points apiece for the Bisons, while McNair and sophomore guard Reggie Anthony combined for another 25. Anthony, whose driving layup in the game’s waning seconds helped seal the win, said that his offensive mindset has changed immensely from his freshman year to now.
“I put a lot of work in this summer knowing that my role would grow and knowing teams would key off of me with the great players I have around me,” Anthony said. “But my greatest improvement since last year has been my confidence and aggressiveness more than a certain skill. Having both coaches and players that have a lot of confidence in me to make plays does wonders.”
The Bisons find themselves a game behind first-place East Central University and Ouachita Baptist University in the GAC standings with four games left to play in the regular season — a place few thought they would be after the loss of senior preseason All-American forward Andras Kavas in December. But Morgan said the leadership on the team never wavered and although outsiders may have doubted them, their goals did not change.
“From the very beginning of the year when A.K. (Kavas) went down, everyone was kind of down and sad for him — and I was disappointed for our seniors, because they worked together to get to this year and were really expecting big things — but none of that ever changed,” Morgan said. “For a lot of people, yeah, it changed. I think outside our locker room a lot of people’s thoughts changed, but inside our locker room we had such great leadership that none of the expectations changed.”
With three of their final four games here in Searcy, Arkansas, Anthony said that the Bisons will look to ride the Rhodes Rowdies to the GAC title they have been chasing since November.
“It’s always great knowing you have the best fans in the nation in your corner,” Anthony said. “We feed off them just as much as they feed off of us.”
The Bisons play tomorrow, Feb. 20, at Henderson State University in Arkadelphia, Arkansas, at 3 p.m. Results from the Feb. 18 game against Southern Arkansas University were unavailable as of press time.
