ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – Tied at 65-all with 1:45 left in the game, Southern Arkansas' CJ Elkins buried a straightaway three-pointer to give SAU their first lead since the 12:15 mark of the second half. Then with under 20 seconds to play and SAU leading by just one, Elkins knocked down another three-pointer to make it a four-point game. Following a three by Ouachita to pull the Tigers to within a point once more, Elkins made good on one of two free throws with just five seconds left to give the Muleriders just enough of a lead to secure the victory, 72-70 on Saturday afternoon at the Bill Vining Arena.
 
RECORDS
Southern Arkansas Muleriders (15-13, 11-11 GAC)
Ouachita Tigers (12-15, 10-12 GAC)
 
FIRST HALF HIGHLIGHTS

• Tight play dictated the opening 20 minutes of the game with three lead changes and eight separate times in which the score was tied. Additionally, the largest lead for either team was a mere six points as Ouachita achieved that margin with 5:48 to play in the first half
• At that point, Ouachita was on an 8-0 run with the last six of those points coming on successful and-one opportunities.
• After that, the Muleriders methodically pulled their way back to the Tigers and knotted the score at 30-all at the 1:55 mark on a free throw by CJ Elkins. Elkins would then make another free throw to give the Muleriders the lead, 31-30. The Elkins' free throws were a part of a 6-0 run that began at the 3:41 mark.
• Ouachita later held a three-point lead with less than 10 seconds to play in the half, but a three-pointer by Elkins sent the game to halftime tied at 36-all.

 
SECOND HALF HIGHLIGHTS

• The second half remained as closely-contested as the first half with a total of seven lead changes and six separate tie scores. Whereas the largest lead on either side in the first half was only six points, the largest lead in the second half was even smaller at just five points (Ouachita at the 7:15 mark).
• After the Tigers secured that apex lead, the Muleriders went on a modest 5-0 run to tie the game at 61-all with just under five minutes to play.
• Over the next two and a half minutes, SAU and Ouachita matched scores to knot the game at 65-all with 2:33 on the clock.
• Following a turnover by the Tigers with just over two minutes to play, Elkins hit the first of his two clutch three-pointers. That triple gave the Muleriders their first lead since the 12:45 mark of the second half.
• On the Tigers' ensuing possession, Kendarious Smith hit a layup to make it a one-point game, 68-67 with 1:31 to go.
• That score held until Elkins drilled another three-pointer with 19 seconds to go, giving SAU a four-point lead, 71-67, but the Tigers' Mahlon Martin made a three-pointer of his own making it a one-point game again, this time with seven seconds showing on the clock.
• Elkins received the in-bounds and was quickly fouled, sending him to the line with five seconds to go. Elkins missed the first shot, but made the second to give the Muleriders a 72-70 lead.
• Thanks to great backcourt defense, the Tigers were unable to get off a clean potential game-winning shot and the final heave by Martin drew backboard.

 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• The Muleriders had just two players score in double-digits with CJ Elkins leading the way with 16 points. Senior KJ Collins was just behind Elkins with a career-high 15 points. Collins' career effort came on a perfect 6-of-6 shooting performance from the floor and 3-of-3 success from the charity stripe as well.
• After not starting a game since late November and not scoring in double figures since November 20, Collins has started the last two games and has scored 11 and 15 points, respectively. In those two games, Collins is 11-of-12 (.917) from the floor and 4-of-5 (.800) from the free throw line.
• As a team, the Muleriders shot 78% from the free throw line, going 21-of-27 against Ouachita. It was the best free throw shooting for the Muleriders since they shot 80% (20-of-25) against Oklahoma Baptist nearly a month ago to the date.
• In specialty stats, the Muleriders out-scored the Tigers 17-14 in points off of turnovers with 11 of those coming in the second half. During that same time, the Tigers did not score off of a SAU turnover.
• The Mulerider defense solidified tremendously down the stretch. Over the last 8:32 of the game, SAU did not commit a single foul and held the Tigers to 5-of-11 shooting overall while also forcing a pair of turnovers.

 
UP NEXT
The Muleriders have secured the No. 7-seed in next week's Great American Conference Tournament in Bartlesville, Okla. As the No. 7-seed, the Muleriders will take on No. 2-seed Northwestern Oklahoma. That opening round matchup will also open up the tournament as a whole as tip-off is scheduled for Noon on Thursday, March 1. During the regular season, the Muleriders lost both games to the Rangers, but had a last-second chance to knock off NWOSU in their most-recent meeting in Magnolia on February 10.