SWOSU Men's Basketball returns home this week to open the official second half of the Great American Conference schedule, welcoming Arkansas Tech and Harding to Weatherford.
 
The Bulldogs enter the week 6-11 overall and 3-8 in league play after facing both opponents on the road to open the conference season. SWOSU dropped a 77-55 decision at Harding before falling 65-60 at Arkansas Tech in early GAC action.
 
With conference standings once again tightly packed, SWOSU has an opportunity to gain ground quickly with a pair of home games. The Bulldogs sit tied at the bottom of the standings entering the week, but a sweep could significantly shift their position as the second half of the conference slate begins.
 
Arkansas Tech (7-10, 5-6 GAC) arrives in Weatherford riding a three-game winning streak, though all three victories came at home. The Wonder Boys have struggled away from Russellville this season, entering the week 0-6 in road games. Historically, SWOSU is 7-23 against Tech in the GAC era but has been far more competitive in Weatherford, where the Bulldogs hold a 6-7 record in the series.
 
Harding (12-5, 8-3 GAC), last season's GAC Tournament champion, split its last week of action and enters Saturday's matchup following a loss to Arkansas Tech in Russellville. The Bisons opened conference play 4-0 but are 4-3 over their last seven games. Harding will face Northwestern on the road Thursday in Alva before making the trip to Weatherford. In the GAC era, SWOSU is 12-16 against Harding, including a 7-6 mark at home.
 
SWOSU is coming off an 80-73 loss at Northwestern in its lone game last week. The Bulldogs struggled from beyond the arc, finishing 5-of-25, continuing a season-long trend tied closely to three-point production. Five of SWOSU's six wins this season have come in games where the Bulldogs knocked down at least 10 three-pointers. All four wins against NCAA opponents — Newman, Southeastern, Henderson State, and Arkansas-Monticello — featured 10-plus made threes.
 
That trend is reflected in the numbers. In six wins this season, SWOSU is shooting 50% from the field and 44% from three-point range. In 11 losses, those figures drop to 39% overall and 23.5% from deep.
 
Individually, SWOSU has two double-digit scorers in conference play. Guard Ty Frierson leads the Bulldogs at 12.5 points and 3.5 assists per GAC game, while forward Kayden Carter averages 11.5 points per contest on an efficient 55% shooting clip. Carter also leads the team in turnovers at 2.8 per conference game.
 
Behind Frierson and Carter, Kray Rogers and Tobias Roland are also producing at a near double-digit rate in conference play, both averaging 9.7 points per game. Rogers is shooting 45% from the field and 39% from three-point range, while Roland is slightly more efficient at 46% overall and 41% from deep.