BOX SCORE
BARTLESVILLE, Okla. – Arkansas Tech’s Will Paul canned a pair of 3-point field goals that ignited a second-half rally that put the Wonder Boys out in front for good in their 56-51 Great American Conference Men’s Basketball Championship semifinal victory against Southwestern Oklahoma State on Saturday from Bruin Fieldhouse.
The Bulldogs (12-16) grabbed a 40-34 lead midway through the second half after Rod Camphor nailed a 3-point shot. However, their bid for a second-straight run to the title game as a lower seed fell short as the Bulldogs went more than six minutes without a field goal following that 3-pointer.
Arkansas Tech-Southwestern Oklahoma State Photo Gallery
Willie Kirkland, the GAC’s Newcomer of the Year, led the Wonder Boys offensively with 13 points He scored eight in the second half and in their two GAC Championship games, 21 of his 27 points have come in the second halves. Jared Williamson and Marshawn Arnold each tallied 10.
Camphor, who set the GAC Men’s Championship single-game scoring record on Friday with 36 points, accounted for just 11 against Arkansas Tech. While he did register a double-double by grabbing 10 rebounds, he shot just 3-for-15 from the floor and made only 2-for-9 from the 3-point arc. The Arkansas Tech (18-10) defense held Southwestern Oklahoma to just 29.4 percent shooting and controlled the glass as they won the rebound battle, 45-35.
Arkansas Tech will go for a second-straight GAC Men’s Championship at 1 p.m. Sunday against the winner of the Harding-Ouachita Baptist semifinal. The Wonder Boys dropped both of its regular-season contests to the Bisons and split with the Tigers.