Box Score Video Highlights

SAN ANTONIO, Texas – St. Edward's dropped an 86-69 decision to longtime rival St. Mary's Thursday evening in the annual "Battle of the Saints" at Bill Greehey Arena. The loss drops the Hilltoppers into a second-place tie with the Rattlers, just one game behind Texas A&M-International.
 
St. Edward's (7-5, 3-1 HC) opened the game on a 12-6 run in the first four minutes of action. FRANKIE MGBOLU had two buckets during the run, including the final one of the run at the 15:38 mark.
 
St. Mary's (11-2, 4-1 HC) fought back using a 9-2 run over the next three minutes to take the lead back, 15-14, with 12:50 left in the first half. Marvin Binney had the hot hand as he scored the first five points of the run, which included a three-point play.
 
A 16-7 run by the Rattlers over the next five minutes increased the home team's lead to double digits, 31-21, with 7:24 left on the clock. Joe Monroe had six of the points during the spurt, with four of them coming from the free throw line.
 
The lead would grow to 15 points by the 1:21 mark, but St. Edward's regained momentum by ending the half on a 6-0 run. RAMIR BURTON was clutch off of the bench, scoring four of the points, including a runner as the buzzer sounded to cut the lead to 44-35 at intermission.
 
Out of the break, St. Mary's raced out to its largest lead of the game at 19 points, when they used a 11-1 lead to open the half. J.J. boloton had the hot hand for the Rattlers as he scored five points and Marvin Binney added four points of his own during the run.
 
The Hilltoppers tried to claw their way back into the game, as they would reduce the lead to eight on five different occasions down the stretch. Each time St. Edward's would close on the home team, St. Mary's had an answer. Bolton was huge for the Rattlers, scoring 15 of his 22 points in the second half.
 
JAMES STUKES led four Hilltoppers in double-figure scoring with 17 points. Burton scored 12 points off of the bench, while both ETHAN GILBERT and Burton added 11 points.
 
St. Edward's will be back in action Saturday when they travel to take on Heartland Conference rival Texas A&M-International. Tip-off is set for 3 p.m. at the Kinesiology and Convocation Building. Live video and stats will be available on the Dustdevil Athletic Website.