Box Score BETHANY, Okla. — It may have started as a silent night inside the Sawyer Center, but by the end of the night it was quite a lively place to be as Southern Nazarene upended East Central, 83-69.
 
“It was a neat start with the student body as they didn't even make a sound until we scored our 10^th point,” said SNU Head Coach Adam Bohac. “We got to nine there for a bit and seemed like it took a while to get to 10 and the gym came alive and that energized us. We got some stops and got going in transition.”
 
The Crimson Storm (9-6, 4-5 GAC) got a big night out of its starters as they combined for 66 points. Ryan Aaron and Brady Burford combined for 46 of those points as both had 23. It was a career-high for Burford who also added eight rebounds and went 10-for-15 from the floor. Aaron pulled down seven boards as well while shooting 8-for-12 from the field and didn't miss at the free-throw line going 6-for-6. Tyrone Lyons also added 11 points and seven rebounds.
 
The Crimson Storm shot over 50 percent from the floor for the eighth time this season. SNU fired 52.6 percent from the field (30-for-57). Southern Nazarene dominated the paint, scoring 40 down low compared to just 26 by the Tigers. SNU also out rebounded ECU 41-25 with 16 of those coming on the offensive glass.
 
“We did a better job of throwing the ball inside tonight,” said Bohac. “We took our time tonight. Brady was really aggressive and hit the glass hard tonight. I think we have to go after those offensive rebounds. It's not just going to bounce to you. For Brady though, it has really clicked lately. He's figured out that a good way to get to touches is to go after those missed shots.”
 
Southern Nazarene trailed by as much as eight early in the first half, but got behind the largest crowd, outside of Homecoming, this season and used a 23-7 to close out the first half and take a 42-34 lead. SNU quickly pushed it to double digits as Garrett Butler capped a 21-8 run with a layup to put the Storm on top 63-42 with 11:57 left to play.
 
That was the largest lead of the night for SNU as ECU rallied to cut it to nine twice with the final time coming at 77-68 with 2:29 remaining. The Storm put the clamps on the Tiger offense and added six more points in the final two minutes without allow ECU to score to seal the win.
 
The Crimson Storm now head to Southeastern Oklahoma State, Saturday, for a 7:30 GAC battle.