Alva Review-Courier -

ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – Southern Arkansas led by 15 points at the half of Saturday afternoon's Great American Conference affair with Ouachita, but the Tigers outscored the Muleriders by 26 points in the second half of action to drop SAU two games back of the league-leading Southern Nazarene with four games remaining in the regular season.

SAU (18-6, 13-5 GAC) has dropped two of its past four games and faces four of the top six teams in the league to close out the season; a tough slate that will certainly decide seeding before heading to Bartlesville, Oklahoma, for the Great American Conference Tournament.

In the loss, the Muleriders managed only 23 second half points as it connected on just one of 11 three-point attempts in the final twenty minutes of play.

Ouachita knocked down six of its nine triple tries in the second half and shot 57.6% from the floor in the final twenty minutes after connecting on just seven of 28 shot attempts in the first half.

Southern Arkansas' largest lead was 16 points at the 17:51 mark of the second half, and its last lead came in a 44-41 advantage with 10:49 to play as the Tigers opened up on a 36-12 run through the under-eight media timeout following the intermission.

DeVante Brooks finished with 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting with eight rebounds, two blocks, and two steals. Aaron Lucas followed with nine points, four boards, two assists, one block and a steal, while Frank Royles and Gabe Gilliam each scored six points.

The Muleriders prepare for their final regular season trip to the Sooner State as a Durant-Ada swing awaits Southern Arkansas. The Muleriders meet Southeastern Oklahoma State on Thursday, February 21 at 7:30 p.m., before a 3 p.m. tip-off with East Central on Saturday, February 23. Live coverage links will be available at http://www.MuleriderAthletics.com.