ADA, Okla. – Thompson Camara scored 18 points and Harding used a dominant 13-0 run to close the first half as the Bisons defeated East Central 67-55 on Thursday night at the Kerr Activities Center.
The victory marks the fifth consecutive win for Harding (17-7, 13-5 GAC), which swept the season series against the Tigers. It also served as a rare road success for the Bisons in Ada, marking only their second win in their last nine trips to the venue.
Camara, who also scored 18 points in the previous meeting against ECU on Jan. 17, led a balanced Harding attack that overcome a slow start from the perimeter. After making 14 three-pointers in each of their last two contests, the Bisons struggled early, shooting just 2-of-11 from deep in the first half.
However, the Bisons found their rhythm through interior play and defensive pressure. With 3:38 remaining in the first half and the game tied, Ty Suess ignited a 13-0 spurt with a traditional three-point play. Marko Rangan followed with two free throws and a dunk off a Suess assist, before Keyln McBride buried a triple to help push the halftime lead to 37-24.
Harding's bench played a pivotal role in the opening frame, outscoring ECU's reserves 12-4, while the Bisons dominated second-chance points 13-2.
In the second half, the Bisons maintained their cushion, stretching the lead to 44-28 following a Camara three-pointer at the 16:13 mark. East Central (13-11, 8-10 GAC) struggled to find its range, missing its first nine attempts from beyond the arc until Jaden Miller finally connected with 10:26 left to play.
The Tigers managed to trim the deficit to nine points, but Harding slammed the door with a 9-0 run. McBride hit back-to-back triples before Wesley Booker capped the surge with a three-pointer out of a timeout to build a game-high 19-point lead at 61-42.
Rangan finished with 12 points and five rebounds for the Bisons, while McBride added nine points and a team-high five assists. Booker and Reggie Webster chipped in eight points apiece.
East Central was led by Brandon Mann, who scored 19 points on an efficient 8-of-9 shooting. However, the Tigers' leading scorer entering the night, Rustin Coffey, was held to just five points on 2-of-9 shooting as the Harding defense limited ECU to 26.7% from three-point range.
Harding finished the game shooting 40% from the floor and outscored the Tigers 32-30 in the paint. The Bisons also capitalized on 16 East Central turnovers, turning them into 16 points.
Harding returns to action on Saturday at Southeastern Oklahoma, with tipoff at Bloomer Sullivan Arena at 3 p.m.
