Box Score The Basics
-Score: St. Edward's
-Records: St. Edward's 14-14, 3-7 HC: UT-Permian Basin 10-11, 5-7 HC
-Location: Odessa, Texas (Falcon Dome)
 
How It Happened
-St. Edward's raced out to a 17-9 lead in the game's first nine minutes. The Hilltoppers were lights out from downtown during the stanza with JEFF CAMPBELL knocking down three treys and CONNER KJER hitting another for the eight-point lead with 11:19 remaining.
-FRANKIE MGBOLU keyed another run for the visitors, scoring seven points and Kjer knocked down another trey to put St. Edward's up 29-15, with 7:11 remaining.
-Anthony Dees would hit a trey with 39 seconds left, but two free throws by SHIMEEK JOHNSON with two seconds left gave St. Edward's a 40-28 lead at halftime.
-A 20-12 run to start the second half by the Falcons cut the Hilltopper lead to 52-48 with 12:25 remaining.
-Two free throws by JAMES STUKES and three makes from behind the arc by JOHN RUTHERFORD pushed the Hilltoppers out of reach of the home team, 63-48, with 10:53 to go, as the lead would stay in double digits the rest of the way.
 
Beyond the Box Score
-St. Edward's led the entire game.
-Rutherford hit a career-high four treys this evening.
-The 56 percent shooting from the floor is a season-best for the Hilltoppers. The previous best was 52 percent in a loss to McMurry this season.
-St. Edward's still has life when it comes to the fourth and final playoff spot for this year's Heartland Conference Tournament. The Hilltoppers have to win their final three games, hope that TAMU-International loses at least one of its last two HC games.
 
2012-13 Heartland Conference Men's Basketball Standings
Team                           Conference             Overall
Newman                              9-3                       19-4
UA Fort Smith                     9-3                       14-9
St. Mary's                            8-4                       17-6
TAMU-International          7-5                      14-10
UT-Permian Basin              5-7                      10-11
Dallas Baptist                      4-6                       8-14
St. Edward's                        4-7                      15-14
Panhandle State                1-11                      5-20
McMurry                             0-0                       14-8
Oklahoma Christian           0-0                       15-8
 
Courtside with Coach Cook
Head Coach Andre Cook on his team's performance:
“It was a great win. I'm proud of our guys for continuing to fight. We are hanging on by a string in the conference tourney and our guys played with that type of urgency.”
 
Cook on the keys to the victory:
“A big key was that we withstood their runs. JOHN RUTHERFORD was key for us off of the bench.”
 
Up Next
The Hilltoppers will be back in action on Saturday afternoon as they continue their two-game road swing in Goodwell, Okla. versus Panhandle State. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m. at the Noble Center. Live stats will be available through the Aggie website.