ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – Ouachita Tigers outscore East Central by 15 in the second half and capture the 86-72 victory.
 
Kendarious Smith led the Tigers in points as he put in 12 on 4-9 shooting. Eric Brown and Allie Freeman both finished with 11 putting in timely shots for Ouachita. Mahlon Martin also added 10 for the Tigers in the win.
 
Ouachita would start off the game with a Mahlon Martin three pointer to take the quick lead. They would extend their lead to five after a 7-2 run started off by an Eric Brown three. Ouachita would make six threes in the first half. Throughout the rest of the half the Tigers would battle over the lead. East Central would close the half on a 6-0 run to take the one point lead at halftime, 39-38.
 
Out of the break the Tigers would recapture the lead before East Central would extend their lead out to five. Matthew Ward would put an end to ECU's momentum as he would sink a three pointer. The Tigers would take the lead back as Mahlon Martin and Eric Brown would hit consecutive threes. To cap off the 8-0 run Wesley Franklin would make a tip in layup for the Tigers. The Tigers would lose the lead but go on a 12-2 run to take a nine point lead of their own at 67-58. Ouachita would extend their lead to 11 after Isaiah Harper would make three consecutive points with 4:00 minutes left in the game. The Tigers would end the game on a 10-3 run by Morris Talbert and Allie Freeman. The run included a shot clock beating three pointer by Allie Freeman with his defender draped over him. Ouachita would improve to 14-11 on the year and tied for the seventh spot in the conference standings.
 
Quick Facts

• The Tigers shot 50.9% from the field and 47.8% behind the three point line.
• The Tigers outrebounded ECU 42-25 including 13-6 on the offensive glass.
• Ouachita's bench scored 38 points to East Central's nine points off their bench.
• The game was tied nine times and included 16 lead changes.
• The Tigers are now 11-3 when scoring more than 75 points in a game.
• The Tigers will clinch the seventh seed in the Great American Conference Tournament with a win on Saturday against Southeastern Oklahoma State.
• They would open conference tournament play on Thursday with the win against Southeastern Oklahoma or open tournament play against Southern Nazarene with the loss.

 
The Tigers return to Bill Vining on Saturday March 2 at 3:00 PM against Southeastern Oklahoma State. It is senior night as the Tigers honor Mahlon Martin, Wesley Franklin and Matthew Ward for their time in the purple and gold.