Harding Game Notes

Harding Men's Basketball

Harding (10-8, 7-5) vs. Northwestern Oklahoma (7-11, 4-8)

Location: Rhodes Field House, Searcy, Ark.

Time: 7:30 p.m.

Series: HU leads 2-1

Coaches: Harding – Jeff Morgan (359-230, 21st season at HU; 376-240, 22nd season overall); Northwestern Oklahoma - Andrew Brown (105-90, 7th season at NWOSU)

Live Stats/Audio/Video: Available through a link on HardingSports.com - www.hardingsports.com/coverage.aspx

Radio: KVHU-95.3 FM (Billy Morgan and Scott Goode)

• Harding plays the middle game of a three-game homestand Thursday at 7:30 p.m. when it hosts Northwestern Oklahoma in Great American Conference play at the Rhodes Field House.

• Harding enters the game 10-8 overall and 7-5 in the GAC. The Bisons are in fifth place in the GAC standings among tournament-eligible teams. Northwestern Oklahoma is 7-11 overall and 4-8 in conference but is not eligible for the tournament.

• Jacob Gibson made four of Harding's 10 3-pointers and scored 22 points in the Bisons' 74-66 victory over Southern Nazarene last Thursday in Searcy. Harding outscored Southern Nazarene 22-12 at the free throw line. Weston Jameson led Harding with seven rebounds and six assists.

• Northwestern Oklahoma is coming off an 89-83 home victory over Southern Arkansas on Saturday. Five different Rangers had 12 points or more. Reserve guard Laakeem Henderson scored 19 points and made four of the Rangers' five 3-pointers.

• Harding and Northwestern Oklahoma are ranked 1-2 in the GAC in defensive rebound percentage. The defensive team gets about 66% of the rebounds in D2, but Harding grabs 75.5% and Northwestern Oklahoma is next at 72.9%.

Inside the Series:
•    Harding and Northwestern Oklahoma are meeting for the fourth time with the Bisons leading the series 2-1. Harding won the only previous meeting in Searcy, 82-66, last season. The Bisons made 13 3-pointers and shot 54 percent in the victory. The Rangers were only 4-of-16 from 3-point range.

•    Harding won the first meeting between the teams this season, 69-63 in Alva, Okla. Hayden Johnson led the Bisons with 23 points, and Harding outscored Northwestern Oklahoma 18-5 at the free throw line. Johnson was a perfect 7-of-7 at the line.

•    T'aries Taylor led Northwestern Oklahoma with 12 points in the first meeting. The Rangers made only 6-of-18 from 3-point range and 5-of-13 from the free throw line. Northwestern Oklahoma held a 14-point lead with 7:50 left in the first half.

Additional Harding Notes:
•    Upcoming milestones: Weston Jameson needs two assists to become only the six Harding player with 400 career assists ... Hayden Johnson needs six blocked shots to pass Zach Roddenberry for third place on Harding's career list ... Johnson is 25th on HU's career scoring list (1,097 points) and needs 43 points to pass Gary Baker (1972-76, 1,139 points) for 24th ... Jacob Gibson needs 15 3-pointers to move into HU's single season top 10.

•    Harding guard Weston Jameson leads the Great American Conference in both assists per game (5.2) and assist-to-turnover ratio (3.2). His ratio ranks 14th in Division II, and his per-game average is 37th. Jameson could be the first Bison to average over 5.0 assists since Steven Barnett averaged 5.5 in 2008-09.

•    In its third season in the GAC, Harding is 14-9 vs. Oklahoma opponents and 14-11 vs. Arkansas opponents.

•    Harding senior Weston Jameson is averaging 34.8 minutes per game, which would set a record by a Bison player in a single season. The current record is 34.5 minutes by Chris Hardaway in 1998-99. Jameson has played 35 minutes or more in 12 games this season, including the last nine straight.

Opponent Notes:
•    Northwestern Oklahoma is a provisional member of the Great American Conference and is located in Alva, Okla. The Rangers are not eligible for the GAC Tournament. Northwestern Oklahoma is the alma mater of Mike Hargrove, former MLB player and manager for the Indians, Orioles, and Mariners.

•    The Rangers are 7-11 overall and 4-8 in the GAC. Northwestern Oklahoma is 5-3 on the road this season, including 3-2 in conference games. Northwestern Oklahoma has played much better on the road than at home, where they are 2-8 overall and 1-6 in conference.

•    Andrew Brown, a 1999 graduate of Northwestern Okla., is in his seventh season as head coach. He has two 20-win seasons and won his 100th game earlier this season.

•    Northwestern Oklahoma is led by 6-8 forward Bruce Wright, a native of McKinney, Texas. Wright leads the Rangers and ranks 13th in the GAC with 14.3 points per game. He has led Northwestern in scoring 10 times and rebounding seven times. Wright also ranks in the top 10 in the GAC in rebounding (8th, 6.5), field goal percentage (8th, 56.0), and free throw percentage (4th, 81.6).