WEATHERFORD, Okla. – On Saturday, the Arkansas Tech men's basketball team played the top defensive team in the MIAA from a year ago, Fort Hays State, in the second of two games in the weekend GAC/MIAA Crossover Challenge, hosted by Southwestern Oklahoma at the Pioneer Cellular Event Center.
As expected, the game was low-scoring and competitive, but ultimately it was Tech that ended up on the downside of the 58-49 final score.
Early action was back-and-forth with a pair of tie scores and four lead changes while the largest lead on either side was four points.
That trend changed around the 5:46 mark as Fort Hays State ripped off a 6-0 scoring burst to turn a three-point lead into a nine-point advantage in less than a minute. The Wonder Boys (0-2) would not let the game away and eventually cut the deficit down to three points, 25-22, by halftime, thanks to a 6-0 run over the final 2:24 of the half.
In the second half, the Tigers (1-1) built their lead back up and swelled it as large as 11 points with 16:25 on the clock.
Trailing by the margin again at the 12:08 mark,
Andre Leavell buried a three-pointer to spark a personal 5-0 run that pulled Tech within six points, 39-33, at the 11:25 mark. The comeback attempt remained in full force over the next four minutes of game action as the run stretched out to 10-0 getting the Wonder Boys within a point, 39-38, with 7:25 left to play.
During that run, Leavell scored eight of the points and made a pair of three-pointers.
For the time being, the Tigers staved off the surge and remained in the lead, but with 4:44 to go, Tech's
Taelon Peter buried a corner three-pointer to tie the game at 42-all. It was the first tie score since it was 9-all at the 14-minute mark of the first half.
Unfortunately, that would be as close as the Wonder Boys would get as Fort Hays answered right back with a three-pointer of their own on their next trip down the court.
That three not only kept the Tigers in the lead, but it was the start of a 12-2 run over the next 2:20 of game time that suddenly put Fort Hays up by 10 with under two minutes to play.
As they displayed the night prior against Emporia, the Wonder Boys were resilient down the stretch and cut that deficit in half with 22 seconds left, but the Tigers were able to ice the game away at the free throw line, going a perfect 4-for-4 the rest of the way out.
Leavell was the only Wonder Boy to score in double figures as he ended with 16. Leavell also had five rebounds and four assists.
Wes Harris was next in scoring with eight. He added six rebounds to lead the team in that category.
The Wonder Boys will now prepare to make their home debut this coming Thursday night against UT-Tyler. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. inside Tucker Coliseum.
