Harding Game Notes
Harding Men's Basketball
Harding (3-5, 0-2) at Southwestern Oklahoma State (5-3, 2-0)
Location: Rankin Williams Field House, Weatherford, Okla.
Time: 6 p.m.
Series: SWOSU leads 6-5
Coaches: Harding –
Jeff Morgan (352-227, 21st season at HU; 369-237, 22nd season overall); Southwestern Oklahoma - Bob Battisti (5-3, 1st season at SWOSU; 379-268, 22nd season overall)
Live Stats/Audio/Video: Available through a link on HardingSports.com
Radio: KVHU-95.3 FM (Billy Morgan and
Scott Goode)
TV: none
• Harding plays the first of 18 straight Great American Conference games Thursday at Southwestern Oklahoma State as it returns to action after a 28-day holiday break. It is the longest break for the men's basketball team since a 30-day break in 1994-95 (
Jeff Morgan's second season).
• Harding enters the game as the GAC's leader in free throw percentage (76.8%). The Bisons have shot over 80% from the line five times this season, including a season-best 90% (18-of-20) at Northeastern State on Nov. 16.
• Harding is playing for the first time since a 93-83 home loss to East Central on Dec. 5. The Bisons trailed by as many as 33 points in the game but shot 61 percent in the second half to close the gap.
Hayden Johnson led Harding with 19 points.
• Southwestern Oklahoma is coming off a 106-86 victory over Hillsdale Baptist on Monday in Weatherford in the its highest offensive output this season.
• Harding leads the GAC with 8.9 3-pointers made per game but are last in the conference in 3-point field goal percentage (31.3 percent). The Bisons take 28.4 3-pointers per game and lead the GAC with 227 3-point attempts.
Inside the Series:
• Harding and Southwestern Oklahoma State are meeting for the 12th time with the Bulldogs leading the series 6-5. Southwestern has won five of the six meetings in Weatherford, including the last three. Harding's lone win was a 67-66 victory in 1999. Harding guard Lenny Bert had eight points, eight rebounds, six assists and five steals to lead the Bisons to victory.
• Harding and Southwestern Oklahoma split the two games last season with both teams winning at home. Harding won 76-54 in Searcy on Jan. 3, and Southwestern won 71-60 in Weatherford on Feb. 9. HU's
Tony Cochran made 7-of-12 3-pointers and averaged 15.0 points vs. the Bulldogs.
Andraz Kavas averaged 10.5 points and 5.5 rebounds. Harding made 19 3-pointers to only eight for Southwestern in the two-game series.
• Bulldog forward Michael Bradley, now a senior at Southwestern, averaged 8.5 points and shot 7-of-9 from the field vs. Harding in last season's two games.
Opponent Notes:
• Southwestern Oklahoma is a charter member of the Great American Conference and is located in Weatherford, Okla.
• Southwestern is coached by Bob Battisti, who is in his first season as head coach of the Bulldogs. He spent the two previous seasons as an assistant coach at Oklahoma Christian. Prior to his stint at OCU, Battisti spent 25 years at Northwestern Oklahoma State, coaching the men's basketball team for 21 seasons before taking over as the school's athletic director for four years.
• Southwestern's top performer this season has been Gary Inglett, a 6-6 junior forward from Ardmore, Okla., who transferred from Murray State College in Tishomingo, Okla. Inglett averages 17.5 points and 8.5 rebounds and also leads the team in free throw percentage (86.4%) and steals (13).
• Southwestern had not played in 30 days until its 106-86 victory over Hillsdale Baptist on Monday in Weatherford. The Bulldogs were playing their first home game since a 67-65 loss to Angelo State on Nov. 9, a span of 51 days. Southwestern played and won four straight road games, including GAC road victories over Arkansas-Monticello and Southern Arkansas, during that time.
• Southwestern entered the Hillsdale Baptist non-conference game ranked last in the GAC in scoring offense at 67.4 points per game, but scored a season-high 106 points in the victory.
• The Bulldogs lead the GAC in 3-point field goal defense, allowing opponents to shoot only 28.6 percent from 3-point range.
