Photo by: Krishnan Collins | Sports Editor: Malik Brevard scored 13 points in the Red Wolves’ 80-54 win over Harding. 

The Arkansas State basketball team defeated Harding 80-54 in the Red Wolves’ exhibition game against the Bisons Wednesday night.

Canberk Kus led the Red Wolves with 20 points on the night while Malik Brevard and Caleb Fields both chipped in with 13 points. Antwon Jackson also reached double digits as the freshman scored 11 points on the night.

A-State started slowly throughout the first half but came out of the halftime talk energized. Red Wolves’ head coach Mike Balado encouraged intensity during his halftime talk.

“I told them if a guy hits a three on you, you’re coming out of the game,” Balado said. “That’s what I told them. I said we gave them way too many. It wasn’t even rotation threes, it wasn’t like they were moving the ball, it was just guys catching it and we’re short closing out. He’s like I’m open and he shot it. I think the intensity wasn’t where we needed it to be.”

Marquis Eaton, A-State’s leading returning scorer from last season, had a quiet game offensively. However, Eaton distributed the ball well and coach Balado said he thought Eaton had a good game. Balado talked about how multiple players on the team can step up and score. This season’s team will most likely not have a dominant scorer like Ty Cockfield was for the Red Wolves last season and this could be a positive for the Red Wolves.

“You know I told them the other day, what’s going to get you to play, because everybody in here offensively is pretty even, what’s going to get you to play is do you know our system, do you come in with the right attitude everyday and do you play defense,” Balado said. “That’s it. Marquis had two points tonight. He’s our leading returning scorer. I thought he had a good game, I didn’t think he scored the ball great but he passed the ball, he guarded.

Game Summary

Second Half

A-State came out of the half firing on all cylinders. The Red Wolves played strong defense and slowly built some momentum on offense.

Kobe Wilson gave the Red Wolves energy when the senior stole the ball from Harding and then finished a layup on the fast break opportunity he created.

Not too long after that, A-State took a 20-point lead at 57-37 before Kus dunked on a fast break. Kus’ dunk put the Red Wolves ahead 59-37.

A-State finished out the game comfortably. Jackson drew a foul as he made a layup before completing his 3-point play to put the Red Wolves ahead 72-48.

Kus capped off a great first game with a 3-point basket to extend A-State’s lead to 78-54 before Jackson ended the Red Wolves’ scoring on the night with a layup.

First Half

Brevard was the only player with double-digit points in the first half for the Red Wolves as the senior scored 11 points in the first period. Eaton did not score a single point in the first half but registered four rebounds and four assists.

Harding kept the game close during the first half despite what looked like a blowout in the opening few minutes. Kus hit a 3-point basket to start the game for the Red Wolves before Brevard make a nice move on a layup to draw a foul. The North Carolina native finished the 3-point play to give the Red Wolves an 8-0 lead.

A-State opened the game shooting 100% from the field as the Red Wolves jumped out to a 17-3 lead over the Bisons. During that point in the game, A-State looked unstoppable and Harding did not have an answer.

However, after a media timeout, Harding went on a 10-point run capped off by a Jordan West 3-pointer. The Red Wolves tried to sway the momentum when Eaton found Brevard on an alley-oop to extend A-State’s lead to 19-13.

The rest of the half was really a back-and-forth battle between the two teams. A-State would gain a little momentum then Harding would answer back.

Brevard gave the Red Wolves some energy with another dunk to give A-State a 25-19 advantage.

It looked like the Red Wolves were going to go into the locker room up by just three points, but Fields made a nice move to the basket to give A-State a 36-31 lead heading into the half.

Looking Ahead

A-State plays in their first regular season game against Arkansas-Monticello on Nov. 6. Tip off from the First National Bank Arena is set for 7 p.m.

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