Alva Review-Courier -

ADA, Okla. - The 25th-ranked Southern Nazarene men's basketball found their rhythm in the first half and cruised to another dominant win over East Central, defeating the Tigers 75-56 and completing the series sweep over ECU for the second straight season.

On Thursday, SNU held the top-ranked team in scoring offense to 57 points. On Saturday, they held the No. 2 team in that category to 56. The Crimson Storm held ECU to 21 od 51 (41%) from the field, 6 of 11 (55%) from deep, and 8 of 12 (67%) from the free throw line.

SNU shot 28 of 56 (50%) from the field, snapping out of a tough skid as of late while going 9 of 21 (43%) from deep and 10 of 14 (71%) from the free throw line. The Crimson Storm outrebounded the Tigers, 34-29, finished with 18 assists, and forced ECU into 18 turnovers while only giving it away 11 times.

East Central took the early lead in the first 10 minutes of the game as one of the top scorer's in the GAC in Cameron Talley got rolling in the early going to take a 17-12 lead. SNU responded with a 14-2 run over the next four minutes to lead 26-19. During the stretch, Coleman Edwards buried three 3-pointers to completely swing the momentum.

From there, it turned the entire game upside down as SNU outscored East Central 14-4 as the likes of Jhonathan Dunn and RJ Palmer took the game over. SNU held a 40-23 lead before ECU closed with four points to cut the deficit to 13 at the break. Dunn finished with 12 points in the first half.

After shooting 0 of 6 in the first half, Micah Speight began to find a rhythm in the second half, shaking off the tough start and going 5 of 7 for 15 points to keep SNU well ahead.

The Crimson Storm led by as many as 22 at one point in the second half. East Central got it as close as 14 on a couple of occasions but that would be as close as the Tigers could come as SNU used great shooting and even better defense to close out ECU for the 19 point win.

Dunn had a huge game, going for 22 points on 9 of 12 shooting, while Speight added 15 points, seven assists, three steals, and three rebounds. Edwards finished with 12 points off the bench on four made 3-pointers while Palmer added 11 points, five boards, and two blocks.

Talley finished with 20 points for ECU but on only 8 of 17 shooting. SNU did not let another TIger player get more than six points.

Southern Nazarene moves to 15-3 overall and 8-2 in GAC play. They close a four-game road trip with a 3-1 record.

SNU will finally return home on Thursday as they welcome in Arkansas-Monticello for a 7:30 p.m. match-up. It will be the "White Hot Game" for the Crimson Storm and all fans are encouraged to wear white at the game. T-shirts will be given away as fans arrive at the game.