Box Score

AUSTIN, Texas – Junior forward JAMES STUKES scored a career-high 19 points to lead St. Edward's to a 78-71 victory over Texas A&M-Kingsville Tuesday evening at the Recreation and Convocation Center.
 
St. Edward's (5-5) opened the game on a 9-6 run in the first four minutes of action. QUINTON LILLEY, who was making his first start of his Hilltopper career, ended the opening run with two buckets.
 
TAMU-Kingsville (4-4) took the lead from the home team at the 10:11 mark of the first half as Donte McGee canned two free throws. McGee made four-straight shots from the free-throw line, while Rashad Basey added four points during the run.
 
ZILIJAN JONES hit a trey with 8:51 left in the first half to give the lead back to St. Edward's but Adam Mughmaw's tip-in tied the game, 22-22, with 8:20 remaining.
 
Two buckets each by SHIMEEK JOHNSON and HARLEY NUSSMAN, along with an offensive board and putback by FRANKIE MGBOLU helped St. Edward's gain its biggest lead of the first half, 36-26, with 4:14 remaining.
 
Both teams went cold from the field, with only Ryan Garcia hitting a three-pointer for TAMU-Kingsville and in what was the strangest play of the night, Nussman getting a wide-open layup. The Hilltoppers were stripped of the ball in the lane and an alert JEFF CAMPBELL skied for a tip to Nussman, who was all alone under the basket. That bucket gave St. Edward's a 38-29 halftime lead.
 
In the second half, it was the Javelinas who came out firing, as Marshall Bonds had a tip-in and Jamahl Brown hit a three-pointer to cut the Hilltopper lead to 38-34, with 18:55 left in the game.
 
The rally was short-lived as CHRIS WACKER had a tip in, along with a three-point play from JAMES STUKES and back-to-back triples from Johnson and Campbell that pushed the lead out to 49-38, with 16:04 remaining in the contest.
 
Texas A&M-Kingsville would slowly chip away at the deficit down the stretch, and with three minutes remaining, a layup by Bonds cut the Hilltopper lead to 68-64. Jumpers from Stukes and Campbell gave St. Edward's some breathing room, 72-64, with just under a minute to play. St. Edward's would hit all six free throws they took in the final minute to preserve the win and snap a two-game losing streak.
 
Stukes was 7-of-11 from the floor and a perfect 5-for-5 from the charity stripe on the evening. Stukes had been struggling from the line as of late, but turned it around Tuesday evening against the Javelinas to help lead the Hilltoppers to victory. Johnson was the only other Hilltopper in double figures with 16 points. One key to the game was free throws, which St. Edward's made 17-of-18 freebies. Defensive pressure was also important for the Hilltoppers as they forced the Javelinas into 23 turnovers while collecting 13 steals. They also took care of the ball on the offensive end, committing a season-low 10 turnovers.
 
St. Edward's will be back in action this weekend when they travel to Fort Smith, Ark. to compete in the Parker Memorial Lions Classic. They will take on SW Oklahoma State Friday with tip-off scheduled for 5 p.m. at Stubblefield Arena. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. for the Saturday game versus Southern Nazarene. Live video and stats will be available on the Lion Athletic Website.