Box Score

MAGNOLIA, Ark. – An 8-0 run to close out the first half gave the Southern Arkansas men's basketball team the lead and momentum heading into halftime. The Muleriders would maintain that lead and momentum throughout the second half as they eventually gutted out a 63-58 win over Arkansas Tech on Saturday evening in the W.T. Watson Center.
 
The hard-fought win snaps a three-game losing skid for the Muleriders and improves them to 6-7 overall and 3-5 in the GAC.
 
The 8-0 run to close out the opening half was not the only significant run the Muleriders would go on in the first half. Trailing by 11 points at the 12:55 mark, SAU would knot the game up at 21-all five minutes later as they went on a 14-3 run. SAU sharp-shooters Nemo Sanchez and Chauncy Williams were the catalysts in that run as the Williams hit a pair of three-pointers followed by Sanchez's three-pointer to cap the run.
 
The Wonder Boys (10-6, 5-3 GAC) would stave off that push by the Muleriders and worked their lead back out to as many as six points with 2:48 left in the first half. From there, the Muleriders would begin their 8-0 run and took a 32-30 lead into halftime. The final six-points of that momentum-shifting run came from long range as Williams and Sanchez each connected on three-pointers.
 
Early in the second half, the Wonder Boys would tie the game up at 32-all as Bobby Hatchett knocked down a pair of free throws at the 18:26 mark. The Muleriders would not relinquish their lead, however as they ripped off a quick 5-0 run.
 
The game would remain close over the next 10 minutes of play as the score was knotted up twice more and the Muleriders would only lead by as much as seven points.
 
A made three-pointer by Hatchett at the 5:04 mark of the second half gave the Wonder Boys a one-point lead, 54-53. Over the next minute, the lead would change hands three times. The final of those lead changes went in favor of SAU and came with 4:18 remaining as Tyrell Taylor knocked down a jumper in the paint.
 
From there, the Mulerider defense would go into shutdown mode as they held the Wonder Boys to without a made field goal over the final five minutes of the game. That stellar defensive effort allowed the Muleriders to protect their slim lead and eventually grow it out to five points by the final buzzer.
 
Statistically, the Muleriders had two players score in double figures with Chauncy Williams leading the way with 17 points. 12 of Williams' points came from beyond the arc as he was 4-of-7 from deep. Jeffrey Walker was next in scoring with 14 points on 6-of-9 shooting. Walker was also a force on both sides of the glass as he pulled down 11 total rebounds (five offensive, six defensive) to notch his second double-double of the year. Alre'k Brown was also a force on the boards as he pulled down a game-high 13 rebounds. Brown, the GAC's leading shot-blocker, added to his total with five rejections against Tech.
 
The Muleriders will jump back into action on Tuesday, January 21 as they will head to Arkadelphia to take on Henderson State. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.