Game Notes

SEARCY - The Harding men's basketball team (3-0) will look to open its season 4-0 for the first time since 2002 when it hosts Gulf South Conference East Division member West Georgia at the Rhodes Field House. Tip-off between the Bisons and Wolves is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.

COACHES: Harding is coached by Jeff Morgan, who is in his 18th season as a head coach and 17th season as head coach of the Bisons. Morgan has a 293-191 career record and a 276-181 record at Harding.

Michael Cooney is in his third season at West Georgia. He has a 25-34 record as the Wolves' head coach.

THE BISONS: Harding is coming off an 89-38 victory over Champion Baptist on Monday at the Rhodes. Junior guard Sam Brown led the Bisons with a career-high 21 points. Kevin Brown had 11 points and eight rebounds and Bradley Spencer had nine points and eight assists.

Senior guard Matt Garner is off to a great start. He is shooting 18-of-23 (78%) from the field, including 10-of-13 (77%) from three-point range. He leads the team in scoring with 16.7 points per game and has scored 50 points in only 55 minutes of action.

Harding has a +10 rebound margin through four games and has seven players with 10 or more rebounds. Kevin Brown leads HU with 8.7 rebounds per game.

In Harding's game against Champion Baptist, the Bisons limited the Tigers to only 38 points, the third-lowest total by a Harding opponent since 1957. The school record is 36 points allowed vs. Arkansas-Monticello in 1988 and Arkansas Baptist in 2000.

Senior Trent Morgan has four or more steals in each of the first three games. He leads the GSC with 4.33 steals per game and needs only two steals to surpass Tim Smallwood for sixth place on Harding's career steals list.

THE WOLVES: West Georgia is a member of the NCAA II Gulf South Conference East Division and is located in Carrollton, Ga. (pop. 23,291).

The Wolves (previously known as the Braves) enter the game with a 2-2 overall record and are coming off a 56-55 victory over Christian Brothers on Tuesday. Junior guard Vojin Svilar hit the game-winning three-pointer with three seconds remaining in the game.

John Pringle, a 6-7 senior forward from Newark, N.J., leads West Georgia in scoring (13.8 ppg) and rebounding (8.3 rpg) ... junior guard Vojin Svilar, a transfer from Oregon State, is averaging 11.8 points and 3.3 assists per game ... Justin Cummings, a junior transfer from Snead State Community College, is averaging 11.3 points per game.

West Georgia has allowed an average of only 57.0 points per game to its opponents in its two wins and 79.5 points per game in its two losses.

West Georgia was picked to finish fifth of the six teams in the East Division in the preseason coaches poll.

THE SERIES: Harding and West Georgia's only previous meeting was in the quarterfinals of the Gulf South Conference Tournament in 2004 in Tupelo, Miss. West Georgia upended Harding 78-77.