The final moments of the final games of the season shape the field of the 2014 Great American Conference men’s basketball tournament in Bartlesville, Okla.
Southwestern had won five in a row, but fell by one point, 90-89, to rival Northwestern in Alva on Thursday night. The loss left room for Arkansas Tech to step into the top spot in the league as it continued its own winning streak.
And the Wonder Boys defeated East Central on a last second three-pointer in Ada, 75-72, to take the GAC regular season crown. It marks the second regular season title for ATU in three years.
The Tigers’ loss dropped them into a tie for third place in the GAC and drawing the No. 4 seed. Still ECU is playing in the postseason. This is the first opportunity for the Tigers since the inception of the GAC.
Southeastern got one more win when it needed it the most. The Savage Storm held on to defeat Harding on Saturday and coupled with a loss by Ouachita Baptist, over which SOSU owned the tiebreaker, made the tournament field.
No. 2 seed SWOSU (17-9, 14-6) will meet Southern Arkansas (11-15, 7-13) at 2:15 on Thursday.
The winner will take on the winner of the first contest of the day. Third seeded Arkansas-Monticello (19-9, 12-8) plays Henderson State (12-16, 8-12) at noon.
Southeastern (9-17, 6-14) will meet top seeded Arkansas Tech (20-8, 15-5) at 5:45. And East Central (15-11, 12-8) is matched with the fifth seed Harding (12-14, 9-11) in Thursday’s final first round game.
The tournament will be held at Bruin Fieldhouse at Bartlesville.