Box Score Box Score
SEARCY – The Harding men's basketball team used a familiar formula to pick up a 59-55 victory over Ouachita Baptist on Saturday in its Gulf South Conference opener.
The formula that has worked for the Bisons this season is: get to the free throw line and win it from there. Entering the OBU game, Harding had made more free throws than all but one other team in NCAA Division II.
Harding made only 60 percent from the line, hitting 21-of-35, but it was enough and the Bisons made them when it counted. Ouachita Baptist shot only 5-of-11 from the foul line.
Kevin Brown led the Bisons with 16 points, connecting on 8-of-11 free throws. He also tied a career high with seven steals, five of them coming in the game's first eight minutes.
Harding improved to 11-2 on the season and 1-0 in GSC play. It is only the second time in program history that the Bisons have had 11 or more wins after 13 games. The 1995-96 team started its season 12-1.
Harding led a low-scoring first half 25-24 at the break. The fourth tie of the second half and 11th of the game came when Ouachita Baptist's Nigel Ramsey made a layup with 6:45 left to knot it at 41.
Senior
Stephen Blake hit 1-of-2 free throws at the 5:44 mark to put Harding ahead to stay. In the last five minutes of the game, Harding made 10-of-12 free throws to maintain its lead.
Junior guard
Bradley Spencer scored 12 points for Harding, and senior
Sam Brown scored all 10 of his points in the second half. Brown connected on two three-pointers early in the second half that gave Harding a nine-point lead, its largest of the game, with 18:09 left.
Ouachita Baptist senior Jeremy Banks led his team with 15 points. He connected on 6-of-8 from the field and made three of the Tigers' six three-pointers.
The victory was Harding's eighth straight over Ouachita Baptist, the longest Bison winning streak in a series contested for the 115th time on Saturday night.
Harding will look to start conference play with two straight wins Thursday against Southern Arkansas in Magnolia. The Muleriders fell 80-65 to Delta State on Saturday in their GSC opener.
