BETHANY, Okla.—Southern Nazarene cruised to a 67-51 victory over East Central on Saturday afternoon at the Sawyer Center. The win broke a streak in which the visiting team had won seven consecutive games in the series.
The Crimson Storm (13-3, 9-1 GAC) led the entire afternoon after Javon Jackson opened the game with back-to-back three-pointers. The Storm went on to score the first 8 points of the game and pushed the lead all the way to 24 points by halftime. They knocked down 7 three-pointers in the first half, while limiting East Central (9-7, 4-6 GAC) to just 14 first-half points. The Tigers were just 5-of-23 (21.7%) shooting in the first half.
SNU continued to cruise in the second half. They maintained at least a 15-point lead for the remainder of the game as they cleared the bench over the final couple minutes of the game.
The Crimson Storm defense continued to shine as they improved on an NCAA DII leading 58.2 points allowed per game.
Jackson led the way in the game with 19 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists.
Tyler McGhie finished with 15 points and 4 rebounds.
Nick Davis and Eain Mowat also scored in double figures with 12 points each.
With the win, SNU remains atop the Great American Conference standings, one game up on Arkansas Tech. The Storm have a quick turnaround, as they travel to Shawnee to take on Oklahoma Baptist on Monday night. The teams split last year's two contests, with the home team winning each game. Tip-off is set for 7:30 on Monday night, following the women's game.
