Box Score (html)
RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. – SWOSU's struggles at Tucker Coliseum continued on Thursday evening as the Bulldogs saw a 16-point second half lead disappear in an 82-78 defeat against Arkansas Tech.
Everything was going SWOSU's way in the first half as
Martell Collins scored 13 points and the Dawgs shot 55.9% from the field to build a 45-31 lead at the break. A dunk by
Juwan Newmen on the opening possession of the second half pushed that lead to 16, a mark the Bulldogs would match two other times during the final period.
The Wonder Boys caught fire in the second half, shooting 70% from the field and hitting 7-of-10 three-point attempts after the intermission as they outscored SWOSU 51-33 in the final 20 minutes. ATU stormed back and took their first lead at 63-62 with 8:08 to play before Collins answered with a three-pointer of his own. SWOSU maintained a lead until just before the final media timeout, when ATU hit a pair of free throws to grab a 70-69 advantage.
A 7-0 run by the Wonder Boys helped ATU take a 73-69 lead with 3:27 to play, but SWOSU's
Collin Jennings had a chance to tie the game after hitting a three-pointer and getting fouled with 1:34 to play. Jennings free throw attempt, however, was off the mark and Tech hit a triple on their ensuing possession to go back up by four, 76-72. Jennings and Collins each hit three's on the next two possessions to get SWOSU back within one, but ATU hit five of their final six free throws and held on.
Collins led SWOSU with 22 points, Jennings added 17 and Newmen had 16, but the Bulldogs bench was outscored 31-12 by ATU's and the Wonder Boys outrebounded the Dawgs 27-26 for the game, including a 20-9 advantage on the backboards in the second half.
"We got physically challenged in the second half tonight and we didn't respond," SWOSU Head Coach
Bob Battisti said following the contest. "Give Arkansas Tech credit, they outplayed us in the second half and deserved to win the game because they made more plays than we did. We have to put this behind us and go play well at Harding, they are another one of the top teams in the league."
SWOSU (11-7, 7-5 GAC) heads to Searcy, Arkansas to face Harding at 3:00 pm on Saturday.
