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2024-25 mbball vs. SWOSU - GAC Tourney
Liz Chrisman
65
Southwestern Okla. SWO 15-13,12-10 GAC
68
Winner Harding Hard 20-9,15-7 GAC
Southwestern Okla. SWO
15-13,12-10 GAC
65
Final
68
Harding Hard
20-9,15-7 GAC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Southwestern Okla. SWO 21 44 65
Harding Hard 31 37 68

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Bisons Advance in GAC Tournament with 68-65 Win

FORT SMITH, Ark. — No. 3 seed Harding advanced to the semifinals of the Great American Conference Tournament with a thrilling 68-65 win over No. 6 seed Southwestern Oklahoma on Friday.

The Bisons improved to 20-9 on the season, notching their seventh 20-win season in program history and first since 2015-16.

Sam Smith led Harding with 17 points, while Stetson Smithson added 17 points and nine rebounds. Rylie Marshall chipped in 13 points, including three crucial 3-pointers in the second half, and Keyln McBride had 12 points and five assists.

Elijah Williams paced Southwestern Oklahoma with 19 points, including a 3-pointer with 2:09 remaining to give the Bulldogs a brief lead. Eli Al-Debaran added 15 points.

Marshall sank a 3-pointer with 6:58 remaining to put Harding up 56-50. Eli Al-Debaran responded with a 3-pointer of his own, but Marshall struck again with another 3-pointer at 6:12 to make it 59-53.

The Bulldogs' Tobias Roland sank two free throws to cut the deficit to 59-55. Smithson's layup with 4:48 remaining pushed Harding's lead back to six.

The final minutes were a back-and-forth affair. Elijah Williams' dunk with 3:20 remaining cut the deficit to two, and MJ Warrior's layup with 2:41 remaining tied the game at 61-61.

Smith's layup with 2:23 remaining put Harding back on top, but Elijah Williams' 3-pointer with 2:09 remaining gave the Bulldogs a brief 64-63 lead. Marshall's third 3-pointer of the half with 1:51 remaining put Harding up for good.

Wyatt Gilbert sealed the win with two free throws with 7 seconds remaining. Southwestern's potential game-tying 3-pointer at the buzzer missed.

Harding will face No. 2 seed Ouachita Baptist in the semifinals on Saturday at 8 p.m.

This win marks Harding's first GAC Tournament victory since the 2015-16 season, when they reached the tournament finals.
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