ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – SWOSU Men's Basketball senior guard Jalen Johnson caught fire in the second half of Saturday's game at Henderson State, scoring 25 of his career high 32 points after halftime to help lift the Bulldogs to an 84-78 win over the Reddies.

Johnson's 25 second half points were exactly half of SWOSU's scoring output in the period – the first time the Bulldogs have scored 50 points in a half all season. He finished 12-for-20 from the field on the day which included a 5-of-9 mark from the three-point line.

The win gives SWOSU a brief bit of breathing room from teams in the GAC standings. The Bulldogs entered the game tied with five other teams at 7-8 in conference play. Following Saturday's results, SWOSU (now 8-8) rests tied for fourth place with Harding, while another four teams are one game behind them at 7-9.  

Versus Henderson State, the Dawgs trailed by as many as 12 in the first half and by eight at halftime, 42-34, before Johnson scored the team's first 13 points after the break and had the game knotted at 47-47 with just over 16 minutes of game time remaining.

From there, both teams remained within two possessions of each other until SWOSU was able to distance themselves late.

A 7-0 run with baskets from Mark Berry, Mason Hart, and finally Johnson put SWOSU up eight, 75-67, with 4:10 left to play which helped push the Bulldogs to the finish line. The Reddies called timeout looking to slow momentum and prepare for a late push themselves, but timely answers by the Dawgs down the stretch made that impossible.  

While Johnson's night was phenomenal, the Bulldogs got help from another two contributors. Ben Smith finished with 20 points on 7-of-10 shooting while grabbing seven rebounds. Mark Berry collected another double-double with 12 points and rebounds, while setting a new career high with six assists.

In the game, Smith became SWOSU's fifth player in Division II history to surpass the 1,000-career points milestone.

Up next for the Bulldogs will be another weekend on the road. SWOSU travels to Alva on Thursday to face Northwestern before wrapping up a four-game road stretch at Southeastern on Saturday. Six games remain in the regular season.