Greyhounds Win Fifth Region Championship

The Greyhounds used a 20-4 run in the first half to build a considerable halftime lead, and Ike Moore and Jalen Lynn combined for 53 points on the way to a 104-83 victory over the North Arkansas College Pioneers Tuesday for the Region 2 Championship at Harding University in Searcy, Arkansas.

The win gives ASU Mid-South its fourth consecutive Region 2 title and fifth crown overall, and advances the Greyhounds to Saturday's District XIII Championship game as they host Region 16 winner North Central Missouri College Saturday, March 7, at 2:00pm.

Down 12-10 early in the first half, the Greyhounds started the run with a Jalen Lynn three-pointer before Ike Moore knocked down a trey, Garret Finley hit a jump hook in the paint, Lynn added another three-pointer, and Jarius Sharp hit a layup in consecutive possessions. Monroe Carr finished the run with a three-pointer and an offensive rebound tip-in to give ASU Mid-South a 30-16 lead midway through the half. The Pioneers would get no closer than 8 points the rest of the half and trailed 65-46 at the intermission.

North Arkansas came out of halftime and scored their first three possessions in a row and eventually cut the lead to 13 on two occasions. But the Greyhounds responded by making shots and controlling the tempo as they cruised to the 21-point victory.

Ike Moore led the charge with 29 points, 6 rebounds and a game-high 7 assists while Jalen Lynn scored 24 points on 9-of-14 shooting including 5-of-10 from beyond the arc. J.T. Smith finished with 11 points and 5 rebounds, Garret Finley scored 10 points, and Zach Byrd and Monroe Carr each scored 8 points and combined for 15 rebounds. The Greyhounds shot an efficient 54.3% from the field while connecting with 36.0% from the arc and holding North Arkansas to 20.0% shooting (5-of-25) from the three-point line.

Saturday's District Championship will feature two Top 20 teams as North Central Missouri College is ranked #6 in the final poll and the Greyhounds are listed at #17. The teams played in this same game last season as North Central Missouri pulled out a 73-67 win at home in Trenton, Missouri, as the Greyhounds shot just 31.4% from the field and 15.6% from the three-point line. 

Tickets are available at the gate and are $5.00 for adults and $3.00 for students. The game will also be livestreamed on NJCAATV.com with the Voice of the Greyhounds, Mark McClellan, doing the play-by-play.