BETHANY, Okla. – In only his second game at Harding, junior transfer Tim Wagner scored 34 points and led the Bisons to a 93-69 drubbing of Northern State on the second day of the Central Region Challenge hosted by Southern Nazarene.
Harding moved to 1-1 with the victory. The Bisons opened the season Friday with an 84-78 loss to Minnesota State Moorhead, but rebounded Saturday with a victory over a Northern State team that defeated Harding last season. Northern State, a member of the Northern Sun Conference and located in Aberdeen, South Dakota, also moved to 1-1.
Harding shot 50 percent or better in both halves and led 41-30 at halftime. Northern State closed to within eight points at 47-39 early in the second half, but Wagner scored the game's next 10 points and a layup by Zac Ward gave the Bisons a 59-39 lead.
An Austin Mankin 3-pointer with 5:27 left gave Harding a 29-point lead, its largest of the game at 85-56.
Wagner, who scored 22 in Harding's opener, connected on 11-of-20, including 4-of-9 from 3-point range. He also made 8-of-9 free throws. Sophomore Filip Medjo, also a transfer, added 15 points, and senior Will Francis had 14.
After tying a school record by making all 16 of its free throws Friday, Harding continued to shoot well from the line by hitting 17-of-21 Saturday.
Northern State shot only 38 percent from the field and just 21 percent from 3-point range, hitting 6-of-29 3-pointers.
Ian Smith led Northern State with 20 points and 10 rebounds.
Harding begins Great American Conference play Thursday at 7:30 p.m. at the Rhodes-Reaves Field House against Northwestern Oklahoma.
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