Harding Men's Basketball Returns to Action Thursday at East Central

Harding (4-5, 3-1) vs. East Central (7-3, 3-1)
Jan. 7, 2016 • Kerr Activities Center • Ada, Okla. • 7:30 p.m.

HOW TO FOLLOW
Radio: KVHU 95.3-FM
Internet:
   Audio: www.HardingSports.com
   Video: www.HardingSports.com
Live Stats: www.HardingSports.com

THE COACHES
Jeff Morgan, Harding
   at Harding: 382-256 (22nd season)
   Career: 399-266 (23rd season)
   vs. East Central: 9-11
Ja Havens, East Central
   at ECU: 43-25 (3rd season)
   Career: same

THE SERIES
Series Record: ECU leads 11-9
in Ada: ECU leads 6-2
First Meeting: HU 84-75 (11/26/1994)
Last Meeting: ECU 77-68 (3/7/2015)
Current Streak: ECU, 2 games

WHAT TO WATCH FOR
Harding enters the game 4-5 overall and tied for second place in the conference at 3-1. The Bisons last game came on Dec. 10. Harding lost 85-79 to Texas A&M-Commerce. Stefan Andelkovic made six 3-pointers and led Harding with 22 points. Harding made 16 3-pointers in the game.

Harding head coach Jeff Morgan is one victory away from 400 in his career. He would become only the 30th active coach in NCAA Division II with 400 or more wins.

KEY MATCHUP
Thursday's game will be a matchup of the top two scoring teams in the GAC. East Central leads the conference with 82.0 points per game with Harding second at 78.9 points per game. The teams are also 1-2 in field-goal percentage.

PLAYERS TO WATCH
Harding has two of the top three players in the conference in assist-to-turnover ratio. Sophomore Reggie Anthony is second in the conference at 2.38 assists per turnover, and junior Will Francis is third with 1.80 assists per turnover.

East Central senior guard Stirling Thomas, a resident of Elgin, Oklahoma, leads the GAC and ranks 12th in NCAA II in scoring at 23.9 points per game. A second-team all-region performer last season, Thomas also ranks second in the GAC with 3.44 3-pointers made per game.

FACTS AND FIGURES
Harding leads the GAC in assists (16.0) and assists-to-turnover ratio (1.35). Harding has had even or more assists than turnovers in each game and has not made more than 13 turnovers in a game this season. Harding leads the GAC with only 11.9 turnovers per game. The Bisons have had 13 or more assists in each game.

Nearly half of Harding's field-goal attempts this season have come from 3-point range (46 percent). The Bisons are averaging 28 3-point attempts per game. Harding's opponents have attempted only 36 percent of their shots from 3-point range, averging onlly 22 attempts per game.

Harding is second in the GAC in field-goal percentage at 45.7 percent. The Bisons have shot 42.2 percent or higher in each game this season and have twice shot over 50 percent.

East Central leads the GAC in scoring at 82.0 points per game. The Tigers have scored more than 80 points six times and more than 90 points three times, including in each of their last two games.

Last season the teams met three times. Harding won 87-80 in Searcy on Jan. 15. East Central won 78-76 in Ada on Feb. 21, and again 77-68 at the GAC Tournament in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, on May 7.

Junior Will Francis is averaging 16.2 points in five games against East Central in his career. He has shot 53 percent, made 14 3-pointers and has 15 assists. Senior Jacob Gibson is averaging 14.0 points in four games, and senior Blake McNair is averaging 10.2 points in six games.

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Players Mentioned

#3 Reggie Anthony: G; 6' 1"; Sophomore

#21 Will Francis: G; 6' 5"; Junior

#15 Jacob Gibson: G; 6' 5"; Senior

#23 Blake McNair: G; 6' 4"; Senior

#42 Stefan Andelkovic: F; 6' 8"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#3 Reggie Anthony
: 6' 1"; Sophomore
: G

#21 Will Francis
: 6' 5"; Junior
: G

#15 Jacob Gibson
: 6' 5"; Senior
: G

#23 Blake McNair
: 6' 4"; Senior
: G

#42 Stefan Andelkovic
: 6' 8"; Junior
: F

Harding University Athletics

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Events

Harding Men's Basketball Returns to Action Thursday at East Central

Players Mentioned

#3 Reggie Anthony

#21 Will Francis

#15 Jacob Gibson

#23 Blake McNair

#42 Stefan Andelkovic

Players Mentioned

#3 Reggie Anthony

#21 Will Francis

#15 Jacob Gibson

#23 Blake McNair

#42 Stefan Andelkovic