Box Score MAGNOLIA, Ark. – It took 10 extra minutes before Harding broke Southern Arkansas' hearts with an 81-77 win in double overtime in a classic Great American Conference match-up Thursday at the W.T. Watson Athletic Center.
 
The Bisons (13-3, 6-2 GAC) knocked down 12 three-pointers and got 10 more chances at the free throw line than the Muleriders (6-8, 2-6 GAC), hitting 19 of 28 while SAU was 13 of 18.
 
Southern Arkansas was whistled for 27 fouls in the game, and the Bisons 18.
 
Tony Cochran led Harding with 21 points, hitting five treys.  Hayden Johnson added 19 points, with four three-pointers, and had nine rebounds.  Zach Roddenberry posted a double-double with 15 points and 16 rebounds, and Weston Jameson chipped in 13 points.
 
Senior guard Rodney Hill (Shreveport, La.) had 19 points and six rebounds for Southern Arkansas.  Junior guard Brandon Demmings (Indianapolis, Ind.) scored 18 points and dished out five assists, while junior forward Duke Reed (Houston, Texas) scored 10 points.
 
The game was knotted at 70-70 following the first overtime, when Jameson, grandson of former SAU sports information director Harold Jameson, took over, scoring six of his 13 points as the Bisons kept the lead for the final five minutes.
 
Jameson scored first with a three-pointer at 3:34, before Reed's lay-up cut it to 73-72.  A pair of free throws from Johnson pushed it back to a three-point game, but Demmings followed with the same and Southern Arkansas trailed 75-74.
 
Jameson came back with a lay-up and one of two free throws and Johnson hit one of two freebies for a 79-74 lead with 14 ticks left that was too much for the Muleriders to overcome.
 
Hill canned a three-pointer to narrow it to a two-point deficit, but Cochran's two free throws sealed it at the end.
 
SAU let an 11-point first half lead get away from them, holding a 19-8 advantage at 9:49.  Harding outscored Southern Arkansas 23-12 the remainder of the half for a 31-31 tie at the break.
 
The Bisons used a 21-9 run to start the second half, building a 52-40 advantage at 9:02.  The Muleriders rallied for a 62-59 advantage with 1:39 left in regulation, but Cochran nailed a trey with seconds left to send it to overtime.
 
The game saw seven lead changes and eight ties.
 
SAU outscored Harding 38-26 inside, but the Bisons got 25 points off 16 Southern Arkansas turnovers, while the Muleriders managed just 14 on 17 miscues.
 
Harding finished at 41.7 percent on 25 of 60 from the floor, including 12 of 33 treys, while SAU was at 36.8 percent on 28 of 76, hitting 8 of 28 three-pointers.
 
Southern Arkansas takes on Arkansas Tech in conference play Saturday in Russellville, with the tip-off set for approximately 6 p.m.