Arkansas Tech 69 Wayne State 62

            Arkansas Tech outscored Wayne State 49-35 in the second half to erase a seven-point halftime deficit and defeat the Wildcats 69-62 at the NSIC/GAC Crossover played at Bruin Fieldhouse in Bartlesville, Oklahoma. It was the season opener for both teams as the Wonder Boys move to 1-0 and WSC is 0-1.
            The Wonder Boys jumped out to an early 15-4 lead with 9:30 to play in the first half.  But WSC caught fire and rallied to take the lead as the Wildcats held Arkansas Tech to just one basket over the final nine minutes of the first half and Wayne State built at 27-20 lead. 
            The rally was fueled by a trio of 3-pointers off the bench from freshman Trae VandeBerg along with a pair of baskets from Patrick Kurth.
            Arkansas Tech scored the first seven points of the second half to tie the score at 27 apiece.  Wayne State took their final lead of the night at 33-32 on a Patrick Kurth lay in with 15:33 to play. 
            The Wildcats were still within two points of the Wonder Boys at 48-46 with 8:45 to play, but Arkansas Tech put the game out of reach with a 13-4 run over the next 4:36 to take a 61-50 lead. 
            Senior center Patrick Kurth led Wayne State in scoring with 16 points followed by freshman forward Trae VandeBerg with 15.  Freshman forward Kendall Jacks also reached double figures with 10 points.
            Wayne State shot 21 of 70 from the field for 30 percent, going 6 of 34 from 3-point range and 14 for 18 at the free throw stripe.
            Arkansas Tech was paced by D.J. Jethroe with a game-high 21 points followed by Clarence Willard's 17 points.  The Wonder Boys made 21 of 52 shots for 40.4 percent.  ATU was 9 for 25 from the 3-point line and 18 for 28 at the foul stripe. 
            Wayne State held a 46-41 advantage in rebounds with VandeBerg grabbing nine to lead WSC followed by Jordan Cornelius with eight.
            The Wildcats had just 11 turnovers in the game compared to 13 for Arkansas Tech.
            The Wildcats will be in action again Saturday afternoon facing East Central of Oklahoma at 4 p.m. in the final game of the NSIC/GAC Crossover Tournament in Bartlesville.