AUSTIN, Texas – The St. Edward's Men's Basketball team won its second-straight game Saturday afternoon with a 73-59 victory over Texas A&M-International at the Recreation and Convocation Center. The win puts the Hilltoppers tied with UT-Permian Basin for the third spot, just one game behind UA Fort Smith and St. Mary's who are in the top position.
St. Edward's (18-6, 10-6 HC) got off to a fast start with an 11-5 advantage after the first five minutes of the contest. They would push that lead up to 11 points after freshman
AUBRIE KING nailed a three-pointer at the 7:28 mark to give the home team a 28-17 advantage.
TAMU-International (10-14, 5-11 HC) battled back as they cut the Hilltopper lead to 34-27 at the halftime break.
RAMIR BURTON led St. Edward's, and all scorers in the first frame with 12 points on 4-fo-5 shooting. Terrell Funches led the Dustdevils with 10 points.
In the second half, TAMU-International would close to within four points after a two free throws from Funches at the 16:51 mark, at 35-31. A 16-5 run over the next seven minutes would put the game away as Burton had five points during the stretch and
JAE RICKETTS capped off the run with a three-pointer with 9:45 remaining. The lead would remain in double digits the rest of the way as the Hilltoppers coasted to victory.
St. Edward's shot 48.9 percent from the floor and made 8-of-17 shots from behind the arc. They also held the Dustdevils to 31 percent shooting. That was a season-best for the Hilltoppers on the defensive end.
Burton led the Hilltoppers with 20 points while also dishing out four assists. Ricketts,
HARLEY NUSSMAN, and
JOHN GRAMLICH all chipped in 10 points each.
FRANKIE MGBOLU quarterbacked the offense to a game-high eight assists for the junior. St. Edward's recorded 19 assists as a team.
St. Edward's will be back in action Thursday when they travel to take on Heartland Conference rival Lubbock Christian. Tip-off is set for 8 p.m. at the Rip Griffin Center. Live coverage will be available on the Chap Athletic Website.
