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ADA, Okla. – A double-double performance by both senior forward Cheyenne North (17 points and 15 rebounds) and junior forward Lyrik Williams (12 points and 11 rebounds) propelled Arkansas Tech (2-0, 1-0 GAC) to an 84-74 overtime win over East Central (0-1, 0-1 GAC) this Thursday (Nov. 16) night in the Great American Conference (GAC) opener at ECU's Kerr Activities Center.  Freshman guard Jayana Sanders (13 points), freshman guard Jacie Higgins (12 points), junior guard Kylie Ladd (12 points), and freshman guard Ke'Vonshaye Stackhouse (11 points) were also part of a balanced Golden Suns' scoring attack.

HOW IT HAPPENED

    •    East Central led 19-11 after the opening quarter as the Tigers scored nine unanswered points in over a two-minute stretch to snap a seven-all tie and take a 17-7 advantage at the four-minute mark.

    •    Tech sliced its deficit to five points (24-19) with 5:25 remaining in the second quarter before ECU went on an 8-2 spurt to extend its lead back to double digits at 11 (32-21) at 4:10 on the clock.  The Golden Suns rallied in the next three minutes to get within 32-29 on a Jayana Sanders' jumper with 1:17 left to play in the quarter and trailed 34-29 in intermission.

    •    A 12-2 ECU run to start the second half gave the hosts a 15-point margin (46-31) with 5:20 to go in the third quarter.  A pair of Jacie Higgins' free throws with 1:24 remaining accounted for the stanza's final points as Tech closed the gap to six points at 51-45 heading into the final quarter. 

    •    The fourth quarter, which featured nine ties and eight lead changes, saw the Golden Suns take a 64-63 lead with just under three minutes left in regulation only to have the Tigers' regain the upper hand and hold a 70-67 edge with 38 seconds left in the game.  However, Lyrik Williams converted a three-point play with 25 seconds remaining to send the conference contest into the extra session knotted at 70-all. 

      •    Tech controlled play in overtime by scoring the first 10 points as a Jayana Sanders' three-point play gave the visitors an 80-70 lead with 1:33 left on the clock.  The Golden Suns, who outscored East Central 14-4 in the overtime frame, sealed the victory in the contest's final minute as Williams and Ke'Vonshaye Stackhouse each knocked down a pair of free throws. 

NOTABLES

    •    Arkansas Tech shot 44.4 percent (4-9) from the floor and 6-8 at the free throw line compared to the Tigers' 11.1 percent (1-9) from the field.  Sanders led Tech with five points while Stackhouse and Williams chipped in with four points apiece.

    •    The Golden Suns out rebounded ECU 61-36, which included 24 boards on the offensive end led by Lyrik Williams' six total.

    •    The conference-opening tilt featured 12 ties and 10 lead changes.

    •    Tech recorded a decisive 30-5 advantage in second-chance points and produced a 30-16 advantage in points in the paint.  ECU capitalized in points off turnovers at 23-9.

    •    The Golden Suns improved to 34-7 in conference-opening games and have won 10 of their last 11 such encounters.  Head coach Dave Wilbers is 10-1 in league openers to date.

    •    Tech upped its record to 32-9 in conference openers on the road.  

     •    Tech has now won eight of the last 11 meetings versus East Central.

NEXT UP

    •    The Golden Suns conclude their two-game conference-opening road swing this Saturday (Nov. 18) against the Southeastern Oklahoma State Savage Storm.  The game is scheduled for a 1 p.m. start at SOSU's Bloomer Sullivan Arena in Durant, Okla., and can be heard live on 102.3 FM (KCJC) in Russellville with Sam Strasner calling the action.