**For Immediate Release**
East Central Tops OPSU Men, 86-67
by Scott Puryear on 01/03/05

Ada, OK - The Oklahoma Panhandle State men’s basketball squad faced a fine East Central University team here on Monday night. East Central upped their season record to 8-3 with their 86-67 win over the Aggies.

East Central jumped out to a fast 12-2 advantage, and continued to maintain a double digit lead for the balance of the opening period. Led by their quickness and hard work, the Aggies fought hard to stay in the game.

At the halftime break, East Central held the lead 44-26, and a good deal of that was based upon their seven three pointers.

The Aggies started the second half with a 6-0 run to put the score at 44-32. OPSU continued to stay with their opponents and with just over 14 minutes to play, the Aggies had narrowed the margin to 53-43.

There was no quit in the Aggies, but East Central continued to shoot extremely well and effectively closed the game out for a 86-67 victory.

Nick Malinowski scored 16 points for the Aggies, all of them in the second half. Teammates Juan Carson and Aaron Harrison scored 14 and 11 respectively.

OPSU (1-11) will head to Billings, Montana for Friday and Saturday games against Montana State University-Billings to open Heartland Conference play.

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