Box Score

SEARCY — The Harding Bisons hit 14 three-pointers and secured its 13th consecutive home victory, defeating Southern Arkansas 79-61 at the Rhodes Field House on Thursday night.

Sophomore Sam Brown hit five three-pointers and finished with a career-high 19 points for Harding (11-4, 1-1 Gulf South Conference). Sophomore Stephen Blake also scored five three-pointers and had 18 points, 14 of them coming in the first half. Sophomore Kevin Brown made 3 of 3 three-pointers and finished with 16 points.

Harding opened the game with a 24-6 lead, largely because of the team's effective three-point shooting. Fifteen of Harding's first 24 points came from shots behind the three-point arc.

By the end of the first half, the Bisons had made 9 of 16 three-pointers. Blake was 4 for 4 and Sam Brown was 3 for 4 from three-point range by halftime as Harding led 40-20.

“The difference tonight was that we made some shots,” Harding coach Jeff Morgan said. “It's one of those things that's kind of contagious; a couple guys hit and it spreads to the other ones.”

The Bisons led by as many as 24 points in the second half, but Southern Arkansas (6-8, 0-2) slowly closed the gap. Channin Harden scored a jumper to bring the Muleriders within 10 points at 62-53, but the Bisons stretched their lead back to 20 points on a layup by Kevin Brown.

Harden led Southern Arkansas with 18 points, and Sanchez Dade added 12 points.

“We knew they'd make some two or three runs in the game, and we had to be ready to snuff them out,” Morgan said.

Senior Steven Barnett finished with 6 points and 8 assists. His eight assists were two more than Southern Arkansas had as a team.

Harding will play Arkansas Tech on Saturday in Russellville, Ark., at 6 p.m.