CLEVELAND, Miss. — The Ouachita men's basketball team lost Saturday's road game to Delta State 75–68 inside Walter Sillers Coliseum.

The Tigers (4-2) raced out of the gate scoring 12 of the first 14 points and controlling the tempo throughout the first half. Sophomore guard Crew Flowers hit a trio of threes in the first half to help stabilize the Tigers' attack.

Flowers drifted to the right wing and buried a second-chance three to break the ice and give the Tigers a lead they would not surrender for the remainder of the half. Five minutes later, senior guard P.J. Neal pushed the ball to Flowers in rhythm to step into a transition three from the left wing. The sophomore finished the first half shooting 3-for-4 from deep and accounted for half of the team's deep shots before halftime. His shooting helped fuel a 36-28 halftime advantage as the Tigers shot 48 percent from the floor. 

Delta State (1–0) flipped the script after the break, pouring in 47 second-half points against Ouachita's stout defensive unit. The Statesmen outscored the Tigers 47-32 in the second half, while knocking down 54.5 percent of their shots. Delta capitalized with a decisive 12–0 scoring run midway through the frame to take control. Delta State's Je'Marion Westbrook led all scorers with 23 points, including 16 in the second half. 

Graduate senior guard Devon Hancock led the Tigers with 15 points, while junior forward Christian Parks added 11 points. Jaxon Conley finished with nine points and nine steals. Ouachita's transition game remained a strength, producing 26 fast-break points. Delta State made 10 threes and scored 13 second-chance points, which proved to be the difference.

The Tigers return to Arkadelphia to host East Central in their Great American Conference opener on Thursday, with tipoff set for 7:30 p.m.