SKIATOOK, Okla. — Ouachita fell short 73-70 to Arkansas-Fort Smith on Saturday in the finale of the GAC/MIAA Challenge at the Brooks Walton Activity Center.

The Tigers (1-1) erased an early 11-point deficit, but could not keep the Lions off the charity stripe. Arkansas-Fort Smith converted 23 of 28 free throws, including 17 in the second-half. The Lions (2-0) built a solid lead on the strength of crashing the boards for second chances, controlling a 22-8 edge in second chance points. 

Ouachita sophomore guard Crew Flowers finished with 20 points on 7 of 11 shooting from the floor to keep the Tigers within striking distance. Flowers hit a trio of threes and finished a transition layup off a steal to score 16 points in the first half. Freshman guard Jaxon Conley grabbed an offensive rebound and scored a put-back layup to beat the buzzer and cut the deficit to 32-28 at halftime. Conley scored 16 points in the loss. 

The Tigers carried that momentum into the second half as graduate senior guard Devon Hancock drilled a 3-pointer from the top of the key to bring it within one point. Conley followed with an alley-oop finish from senior point guard PJ Neal to give Ouachita its first lead at 35-34 early in the second half. The pendulum swung back and forth as the Tigers and Lions swapped eight lead changes. The Tigers momentarily took a 67-66 lead with another put back from Conley with under two minutes to play. 

After the Lions responded as Christian Moore drove in for a go-ahead layup with 58 seconds left, Hancock buried a baseline jumper to reclaim a 69-68 lead with just 23 seconds left. Hancock finished with 13 points and five rebounds. Moore kept attacking the paint and finished a game-sealing layup through contact with, then hit the ensuing free throw for a 71-69 advantage. 

The Tigers return to Arkadelphia to host Dallas Christian in Tuesday's home opener. Ouachita will hold a special pre-game ceremony to honor the life and legacy of longtime Head Coach Bill Vining Sr. prior to the 7 p.m. tip-off.