ALVA, Okla. - The Northwestern Oklahoma State men's basketball team will return home for Hall of Fame weekend in Alva with the hopes of quickly erasing a tough two game losing streak at the hands of Ouachita Baptist and Henderson State.

A tight conference race got even tighter after the results came in from the games across the Great American Conference a weekend ago, and when the dust settled over the weekend the Rangers find themselves in a tie for second place at 8-5 with East Central and Southeastern Oklahoma State. Southern Nazarene has extended their lead for a regular-season championship and now sits comfortably in first place at 13-0.

The Rangers will welcome Arkansas Tech to Percefull Fieldhouse on Thursday night and then turn around and host Harding for the Hall of Fame game on Saturday afternoon. Arkansas Tech defeated both teams that Northwestern is currently tied with in East Central and Southeastern during last weekend's series of games, while Harding earned their second victory of the season over Southeastern on Saturday afternoon.

After posting a season-high 101 points against East Central back on Jan. 20, the Northwestern offense slowed down over the weekend and was limited to just 68 and 63 points in the losses at Henderson State and Ouachita Baptist. The Rangers still boast the league's best team three-point field goal percentage at 41 percent and will be looking to keep pace with a high-octane Arkansas Tech offense that averages 87.6 points per contest.

Senior Cody Halvorson was limited to just 17 total points for the weekend and will be looking for a bounce-back performance over this weekend's series of games. The three-point specialist still leads the team in scoring with an average of 14.6 points per game, followed closely by junior Treyvon Andres, who averages 11.9.
Junior college transfer A'keem Oglesby provided some valuable points of the bench during Saturday's contest against Henderson State, netting a season-high 19 points that included a 5-of-6 shooting performance from behind the three-point line. Oglesby has continued to settle in to head coach Shawn Dirden's system throughout the season and will be looked upon to continue to provide meaningful minutes.

An always-talented Wonder Boys roster that will enter Percefull Fieldhouse on Thursday evening will feature four Division I transfers and has produced the top-ranked scoring offense (87.6 ppg) in the Great American Conference so far this season. Arkansas Tech will enter the Thursday night contest winners of two straight over Southeastern Oklahoma State and East Central.

Freshman RJ Glasper currently ranks fourth in the league with an average of 18.6 points per game and is coming off a weekend in which he totaled 18 and 25 points. Fellow guards Harris Brown and Montrell Williams have joined Glasper as three of five Wonder Boys that currently average double digit scoring. Williams has gained a reputation as a highlight-reel dunker across the league and will pose a physical skill set that is difficult for any squad to match.

Williams totaled 18 points in the Wonder Boys 86-83 victory over the Rangers back on Dec. 2 in Russellville, Ark. while five Rangers reached double-digit scoring in the contest. The previous meeting went all the way down to the wire, setting the stage for what figures to be yet another close contest between two solid teams.

The Rangers will then turn their attention towards a Harding team that has been entrenched in a rebuilding year after years of solid teams is coming off a big win at home against Southeastern Oklahoma State. The Bison have struggled to consistently put points on the board, ranking last in the league with an average of 69.8 points per game.

Senior Tim Wagner ranks ninth in the league with an average of 15.5 points per game after an All-Conference season a year ago. Wagner and junior Reggie Anthony have provided Harding with their only consistent scoring threats throughout the season.

The Rangers dominated the Bison in the team's first meeting back on Nov. 30. A.J. Jones had a team-high 21 points in the contest as Harding failed to match the athleticism the Rangers brought to the table.

Games are set to tip-off Thursday evening at 7:30 p.m. and then on Saturday afternoon at 3 p.m.