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2nd-half run lifts Henderson State

Henderson State outscored Southern Arkansas by 22 points in the second half Saturday to turn a nine-point halftime deficit into a 73-60 victory in the men’s semifinals of the Great American Conference Tournament in Bartlesville, Okla.

The sixth-seeded Reddies (14-16) out rebounded the seventh-seeded Muleriders (12-16) 44-27. Taylor Smith, Reggie Murphy, Bryan Umora and Ronald Lawson all had at least six rebounds. Murphy led Henderson State with 14 points on 5-of-9 shooting.

Henderson State took control with an 18-6 run early in the second half. Melvin Haynes, who came off the bench to score 14 points, ended the run with a three-pointer that gave the Reddies a 47-44 lead. HSU’s bench outscored SAU’s 33-12.

Tyrell Taylor led Southern Arkansas with 13 points and 10 assists. Jeffrey Walker also had 13 points for the Muleriders.

HARDING 83, ARKANSAS TECH 64

Much like the first men’s semifinal, Harding used a second-half run to turn a three-point halftime lead into a comfortable victory over Arkansas Tech.

The run was keyed by three-point shooting, as the Bisons (14-14) hit 7 of 13 three-pointers in the second half. They finished 13 of 25 (52 percent) behind the three-point line for the game and hit 23 of 43 (53.5 percent) shots from the floor.

Weston Jameson led Harding with 27 points, including 5-of-7 shooting on three-pointers, to go with six rebounds. Hayden Johnson scored 20 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Bisons, while Blake McNair added 13 points.

Bobby Hatchett led Arkansas Tech(21-9) with 14 points and Darrick Little added 10.

WOMEN SW OKLAHOMA STATE 87, EAST CENTRAL (OKLA.) 83

Taryn Sayama scored a game-high 24 points to lead Southwestern Oklahoma State over East Central (Okla.) and advance to the women’s championship game.

SW Oklahoma State held an edge in several statistical categories, most notably points in the lane (42-26), bench points (21-15) and fast break points (10-2). Michelle Fisher added 18 points for the Bulldogs.

Dilan Webster led East Central with 17 points on 7-of-13 shooting from the floor. Alycea Price scored 16 points for the Tigers and Erin Walling had 15.

HARDING 81, ARKANSAS TECH 48

Kristen Celsor and Shana Holmes scored 16 points each to pace Harding in a victory over Arkansas Tech.

Celsor’s points came on 7-of-11 shooting from the floor, while Holmes’ came on 6-of-9 shooting. As a team, Harding shot 48 percent (28 of 58) from the floor and 71 percent (15 of 21) from the free-throw line. Celsor also added 14 rebounds for the Lady Bisons (29-1), who held advantages in points in the lane (28-8), points off turnovers (11-9) and points off the bench (36-20).

Caroline Eubanks led Arkansas Tech (17-11) with 10 points.

GAC Tournament At Bruin Fieldhouse, Bartlesville, Okla.

All times Central MEN SATURDAY’S SEMIFINALS Henderson State 73, So. Arkansas 60 Harding 83, Arkansas Tech 64 TODAY’S CHAMPIONSHIP Henderson State vs. Harding, 1 p.m.

WOMEN SATURDAY’S SEMIFINALS SW Oklahoma St. 87, E. Cent. (Okla.) 83 Harding 81, Arkansas Tech 48 TODAY’S CHAMPIONSHIP SW Oklahoma St. vs. Harding, 3:30 p.m.

Sports, Pages 27 on 03/09/2014

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