Jonesboro, AR – Contributed – Arkansas State men’s basketball established control early and did not look back in a 91-54 rout of Bowling Green on Saturday afternoon inside First National Bank Arena.
The 37-point margin of victory is the largest against a Division I opponent since a 99-56 win over Central Arkansas on November 24, 2013. The Red Wolves also completed a season-sweep of opponents in the MAC-SBC Challenge for the first time since its inception in 2023-24.
Christian Harmon led all scorers with 18 points while TJ Caldwell (14), Aly Tounkara (11), and Jaxon Ellingsworth (10) also reached double figures. Tounkara recorded a team-high 10 rebounds and secured his second career double-double, while Chandler Jackson swiped a season-best four steals and dished eight assists.
As a team, the Red Wolves shot 33-for-64 (51.6 percent) from the field, including 13-for-31 (41.9 percent) from three-point range, and 12-for-21 (57.1 percent) from the free-throw line. A-State outscored Bowling Green in points off turnovers (17-9), points in the paint (38-28), second chance points (15-1), fast breaks (16-13), and bench points (39-16).
Hayman and Harmon netted three-pointers while Tounkara added a layup as a 10-1 Red Wolves run opened the contest. The run spanned 7:54 and was highlighted by three shot clock violations plus a five-second violation forced by A-State.
The Falcons registered their first field goal of the contest at the 12:06 mark and scored on their next two possessions to close the gap to three points. Momentum stalled for the opposition as A-State opened a 22-12 lead with 5:40 remaining, and after a 1:43 scoreless stretch, Harmon connected on back-to-back three-pointers to create a 16-point gap.
The offensive surge continued through the end of the first half, as A-State capped a 23-2 run with a layup from Joey Chammaa and took a 40-14 lead into intermission. The Red Wolves limited Bowling Green to 4-for-24 (16.7 percent) shooting from the field in the first 20 minutes of action, and the 14 points scored set a new First National Bank Arena record for fewest allowed in a half by an A-State team.
The previous record was 16 points scored by Louisiana Tech on January 6, 1996.
Hayman converted two three-pointers to create a 46-16 score at the 18:33 mark, the first 30-point margin of the contest. The Scarlet and Black outscored the opposition 16-10 and took a 36-point lead following a dunk from Hampton, but a 7-0 run for the Falcons forced a timeout.
The advantage remained near the 30-point mark until a three-point play from Tounkara paired with a three-pointer from Caldwell made the score 76-39 with 5:07 to go. Bowling Green answered with a jumper, but Jaxon Ellingsworth countered with three free throws and a dunk to push the lead into the 40-point range.
The margin reached a peak of 42 points with 2:57 remaining in the contest, but Bowling Green outscored A-State 11-6 beyond that point. Chudi Dioramma capped the scoring effort with a layup at the 35-second mark as A-State extended its home winning streak versus non-conference opponents to 15 games.
A-State hosts ULM on Wednesday, Feb. 11, at 7 p.m. inside First National Bank Arena. The matchup will be broadcast on ESPN+.
