ARKADELPHIA, Ark. - Despite leading by eight at halftime, 19 in the second half and eight with a minute and a half remaining in regulation, Henderson State fell to East Central Saturday, 78-77.

With two turnovers and two missed free throws in the final minute from the red-and-gray, the Tigers were able to mount a 10-0 run to close the game and snatch the victory from the Reddies.

Malek Davis led the way for Henderson (6-9, 5-5 GAC) with 17 points, five assists and three steals, while the team saw a successful shooting night, hitting 47.7 percent (31-of-65) of its field-goals and 55.6 percent (5-of-9) from beyond the arc.

The Achilles heel for the Reddies on the night was turnovers. After committing 10 turnovers by the six minute mark of the first half, HSU finished with a season-high 18 turnovers.

Henderson did not make a field-goal until the 16:51 point of the game, but defense overcame a slow start as the game saw three ties in the first 15 minutes of the first half. At 21-21, the red-and-gray used a nine-point spurt to see what would become an eight-point advantage at the break, 35-27.

The momentum swing continued into the second half as the Reddies opened the second half with a 9-2 run for a 44-29 lead before ECU called its first timeout of the second half with 17:20 on the clock.

The lead grew to 19 as Henderson sported a double-digit lead all the way the clock read 10:10. From there, East Central began its climb, closing the gap to two with three triples over its next four field-goals. It seemed like the threat was dispelled, however, as the Reddies reopened a 6-9 point lead over the next six minutes.

Over the final minute and a half, the red-and-gray would go 0-for-4 at the free-throw line and turn the ball over twice as East Central made all five of its free-throws over the final 90 seconds, including the eventual game-winner with 10 seconds remaining, to complete the comeback.

Henderson St. will remain in Arkadelphia when it goes across the street to take on Ouachita Baptist in the season's first edition of the Battle of the Ravine Thursday, Jan. 25 at 7:30 p.m.