2025-26 Men's Basketball Game Notes

ARKADELPHIA, Ark. -- Henderson State returns to the Duke Wells Center Saturday for its second consecutive home game to open conference play. The Reddies play host to East Central at 3:00 p.m.

HSU comes into Saturday's game on the heels of a heartbreaking loss to Southeastern Oklahoma on Thursday night. The Reddies led the entire game until the 6:05 mark of the second half, where the teams traded leads until SEOSU took the lead for good with 2:30 left in the game. HSU was held scoreless for the last 4:58 of the game.

The Reddies were led by Xavier Owens and KJ Sykes, who scored 18 points each to pace the team. Owens and Tyson Whybrew each had six rebounds, a category which HSU led for the entire game. The team shot 50 percent from the field in the first half, but struggled from three-point range, going just 6-of-22 from long distance.

Despite scoring the second-fewest points of the season, Henderson State still leads the GAC in scoring offense at 86.6 points per game. The team has scored 606 points this season, 21 more than second-place Ouachita Baptist.

Scouting East Central

Meanwhile, East Central was picked to finish 12th in the GAC in the preseason poll, but have started out with four wins in their opening six games. The Tigers are 1-2 against Division 2 competition this season, with the lone win coming over Minot State. ECU lost an early season matchup with Minnesota-Crookston and won three consecutive games, including two over NCCAA teams, before losing Thursday night's conference opener at Ouachita Baptist.

Junior Rustin Coffey leads ECU with 12.3 points per game. The junior transfer from Murray State College is one of just two Tiger players to average double figures this season, with sophomore guard Jaden Miller being the other. Miller also leads the team with 42 of the team's 100 assists this season.

The Tigers are shooting nearly 48 percent from the field this season while allowing opponents to shoot just under 41 percent. The team leads the league in assists while having the second-best scoring defense in the league, yielding just 64.2 points per game.

How to Watch

Thursday's game, as well as all home contests, will be streamed live on the Henderson State Sports Network on YouTube. The stream can be found by following this link.