RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. – Arkansas Tech men's basketball moved to 1-0 on the season and in the Great American Conference on Thursday, defeating Southwestern Oklahoma State, 84-67. Montrell Williams led all players with 27 points in his first career game for the Wonder Boys.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Williams opened the contest with a three-pointer on Tech's first possession. Southwestern (0-3, 0-1 GAC) quickly took its first lead, however, with three straight triples.
• Down 9-3, Tech (1-0, 1-0 GAC) answered with a 13-0 run, including seven consecutive points by Williams. The Wonder Boys later claimed their largest lead of the half after a Trevin Woods free-throw put Tech ahead, 27-17.
• Tech held the lead for the final 15:30 of the first half, but consecutive threes by SWOSU's Nick Shoemaker cut the deficit to just two points at the end of the period.
• The Wonder Boys never trailed in the second half, eventually claimed their largest lead of 14 on the final point of the contest. The Bulldogs pulled within one possession of tying the score on five separate occasions, but Tech answered each time to maintain its lead.
• Tech outscored the Bulldogs, 49-34, in the second half after shooting 52.9 percent from the field. The Wonder Boys also netted 9-11 free-throws to secure the victory.

 
NOTABLES

• Tech held a lead for nearly 36 minutes of the 40 minute game. 
• The Wonder Boys finished the game shooting 45.7 percent from the floor. SWOSU was held to a 36.9 percent field-goal percentage. Tech out-rebounded the Bulldogs 48-35.
• Tech forced 15 turnovers by the Bulldogs, resulting in 16 points. The Wonder Boys committed nine turnovers but did not allow Southwestern to score on any of the following possessions.
• Arkansas Tech also won the battle inside, outscoring SWOSU, 34-12 in the paint.
• Williams' 27 points came on 11-16 shooting from the floor. He added five rebounds, two assists, two blocks and two steals.
• Justin Graham added 11 points in his first game in a Tech uniform, to go along with a game-high seven assists. Woods also finished in double figures, scoring 10 points.
• Branden Williams secured a career-high 16 boards to lead all players in the victory, while Bennie Lufile followed with 11.
• 68 of the 84 points scored by Tech came from Wonder Boys playing in their first career game in an Arkansas Tech uniform.

 
COACH KLINE SAYS

• "Montrell is a terrific athlete, and he is a scorer. Especially in the first half when we were struggling to score, he was the one guy that was putting the ball in the goal."
• "I am proud of everyone. We got the season off to a good start in front of a good, home crowd."

 
NEXT UP

• The Wonder Boys will take on Northwestern Oklahoma State in Tucker Coliseum on Saturday for their second GAC game of the season. Tipoff is scheduled for 3 p.m.