Post-game Highlights and Coach Morgan's Comments

Harding, who won three straight games last season to claim the tournament title, will meet the winner of East Central (No. 2 seed) and Southern Nazarene (No. 7 seed) on Saturday at 5:45 p.m.

All five of Harding's starters scored 10 points or more, led by junior Blake McNair's 24 points and sophomore Will Francis' 20 points. McNair played the entire game, and Francis played 39 minutes.

Harding (14-13) shot 54 percent in the game and made 11-of-20 3-pointers, but the most important points may have come from the free-throw line in the final 72 seconds of the game. Freshman Reggie Anthony made two free throws with 1:12 remaining to end a furious 11-0 run by Southern Arkansas that cut Harding's lead to six. From the 1:03 mark on, McNair made 10 consecutive free throws to close out the victory.

"We relaxed and gave up some easy shots on turnovers," Harding head coach Jeff Morgan said of the late Southern Arkansas run. "But we stepped up to the line and made the free throws when we needed them, especially the two from Reggie Anthony."

Harding was 4-of-9 from the free-throw line before hitting its final 12.

Junior Kevin Jordan, a 6-foot-10 forward, scored a season-high 26 points and added 12 rebounds to lead Southern Arkansas (15-12), who also lost to Harding in the quarterfinal round in the 2013 tournament. The Muleriders outscored the Bisons 52-34 in the paint but made only 4-of-22 3-pointers.

The top long-range shooting team in the conference, Harding used its 3-point prowess in the first half to build a 44-40 halftime lead. The Bisons shot 52 percent in the second half, made five 3-pointers, and saw their lead balloon to as many as 17 with just over minutes left in the game.

Francis was 7-of-12 from the field, including 4-of-6 from 3-point range, and scored 17 of his points in the first half. McNair tied Harding's GAC Tournament record at the free-throw line. Zach Roddenberry also went 10-of-10 from the line against Arkansas-Monticello in 2012.

Junior Andraz Kavas had 14 points and six rebounds. Junior John Hudson made two 3-pointers and scored 11, and Anthony tied his season high with 10.

Harding has split the two previous meetings with its two potential opponents this season, defeating both East Central and Southern Nazarene at home and falling to both on the road.