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Harding University Athletics

Harding Men's Basketball
79
Henderson St. HSU 1-2,1-2 GAC
89
Winner Harding Hard 2-0,2-0 GAC
Henderson St. HSU
1-2,1-2 GAC
79
Final
89
Harding Hard
2-0,2-0 GAC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Henderson St. HSU 36 43 79
Harding Hard 45 44 89

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | by Scott Goode (1/14/21)

Started With Eight, Finished With Six, Harding Still Downs Henderson State

SEARCY – Playing with only eight players Thursday against Henderson State, Harding battled foul trouble most of the game. And battled. And battled. And in the end, won out over the foul trouble and the Reddies, defeating Henderson State 89-79 in Great American Conference action.

How bad was the foul trouble? With almost 10 minutes remaining in the game, half of Harding's team had four fouls. Two fouled out, but Harding persevered to earn its second straight win.

"I thought we were going to finish with three or four guys on the floor," Harding coach Jeff Morgan said.

Harding (2-0, 2-0) had six players out due to COVID-19 protocols. GAC rules allow a team to play as long as seven players or more are available.

"This whole thing has been an emotional rollercoaster, but our guys have handled it so well," Morgan said. "They have come out and practiced hard even though we are practicing with little or no contact."

There was plenty of contact Thursday night, however, as Harding's eight players committed 27 fouls. Henderson State (1-2, 1-2) did not take advantage of its many trips to the line. The Reddies missed seven of 16 free throws in the second half.

Harding will play against Saturday at home against Southern Arkansas, seeking its first 3-0 start since the 2012-13 season.

The Bisons led the Reddies 45-36 at halftime after connecting on seven 3-pointers in the first half and limiting Henderson State to only 39% shooting and one 3-pointer.

Harding pushed its lead to as many as 13 points early in the second half. Stetson Smithson made a 3-pointer with 14:25 left to put the Bisons ahead 59-46.

As the fouls mounted against Harding, Henderson State chipped away and pulled within four points at 75-71 on two Malik Riddle free throws with 4:11 left.

Harding answered every run. Jordan West, Dorian Benkovic and Ramiro Santiago all responded to late Henderson State buckets by making key shots with less than two minutes left in the game. Romio Harvey made five free throws in the final minute to seal the win.

Harvey led Harding with 28 points, connecting on 11 of 12 free throws. Santiago had his first 20-point game as a Bison. He made 9 of 16 shots and five 3-pointers to score 24.

Harding had 12 3-pointers to Henderson State's five.

Raekwon Rogers had 16 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Reddies.
 
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