Bisons down Arkansas Baptist for fifth consecutive win

In tonight’s tough game against a scrappy Arkansas Baptist (3-10) team, the Bisons (6-1) managed to pull out a win, 94-83. The Buffaloes actually led at the half 42-41, but the Bisons had come storming back from an early deficit once again, pulling to within one on a Patrick Andrepont dunk at the halftime buzzer. The offense got back on track in the second half, piling up 53 points en route to a victory.

The Four Keys:

Neither team was great shooting the ball from behind the arc, but both made some easy baskets inside to come out with respectable (and similar) true shooting percentages. ABC, despite being the smaller team, had a slight rebounding edge for the game, which is somewhat disheartening. Those areas were a wash, so turnovers and free throws were the Bisons’ weapons du jour tonight.

HU forced some turnovers and did a very good job holding on to the ball, as sloppy as the game may have looked at times. The foul line was our friend as well, since we converted 23 of 29 free throw attempts. In the last four games, we have been to the line an average of 28 times, compared to 16 in the first four games. Things are clearly coming around in that department, as we have been much better about getting to the basket. It also helps that we’ve played a handful of close games (at least close enough for there to be a lot of fouls toward the end).

From an individual standpoint, there was no one star tonight. Brandon Sims, Patrick Andrepont, and Lonnie Smith all reached at least 20 points, with Smith leading the way at 25. Sims had his second double-double in three games, grabbing 13 rebounds tonight. Four Bisons had game scores of at least 10, with Smith again leading the way at 22.0.

Four Buffaloes had 17 points exactly, and all four also had game scores of at least 10.0. Terrell Jacob added 8 rebounds to his 17 points, and Kevin Morris added 5 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 steals.

Here are the game scores for Harding (regular box score):

The Bisons finish up their five-game homestand on Thursday against Central Baptist.