Southern Arkansas opened Great American Conference basketball action Thursday night in Arkadelphia and dropped a pair of games to Henderson State.
The Muleriders jumped out to double-digit advantage, but Henderson State rallied to tighten the deficit to a bucket at the break and won 75-67. The Reddies, preseason No. 2 in the coaches poll, withstood the Muleriders' efforts and had 47 second-half points on nearly 60% shooting from the floor.
The Lady Muleriders fell 98-90 in overtime during a high-scoring affair.
Both SAU teams will return to action today at home against Harding. The women's battle will tip off at 1 p.m., followed by the men's game at 3 p.m.
The Muleriders and Reddies had seven lead changes and three tied scores in the second half alone with the final tie coming at 51 with 9:17 remaining in the game as Kris Wyche and Carel Ray Jr. each knocked down triple tries in consecutive possessions to even the action. Ninety seconds later, Jerry Carraway Jr. nailed a trifecta to give SAU a 54-53 lead. It would be the final advantage for SAU in the loss as Henderson State responded with a 13-0 run over 5:30 of action to lead 66-54 with 2:10 left.
Wyche led SAU with 15 points LaTreavin Black followed with 13 points. Gregory Hammond Jr. also scored 13.
Lady Reddies 98,
Lady Muleriders 90 OT
With eleven seconds left on the clock and the Lady Muleriders down two points, senior Diamond Morris snagged the rebound from a Reddie free throw before booking it down the court to make a layup with just four seconds left on the clock to single-handedly send the Lady Muleriders to overtime in consecutive games. Despite their overtime effort, the Muleriders were unable to come away with the win, losing 98-90 after 45 minutes of play.
Morris once again recorded a double-double, scoring a team-leading 23 points and 10 rebounds. Junior Braydyn Hill followed with a season-high 19 points, while senior Mychala Linzy added 18 points. Linzy also had three 3-pointers.
The teams stayed within striking distance of each other before the Lady Reddies went on a 10-0 run to set the Lady Muleriders back 10 points. Southern Arkansas retaliated with a 7-0 run highlighted by a three pointer by freshman Brooklin Brown and layups by Linzy and sophomore Jada Gasaway.
Henderson State went on a 5-0 run to start the fourth quarter to set Southern Arkansas back 10 points again. Henderson held a lead over SAU for the entire final quarter before the Morris layup tied the battle at 81-81 and sent it to overtime play.
Henderson outscored the Muleriders 17-9 in the extra period, led by Ashley Farrar who finished with a game-high 44 points.