WICHITA, Kan. – St. Edward's men's basketball dropped its Heartland Conference opener Saturday afternoon, falling to Newman 108-98 at Fugate Gymnasium.
 
The Hilltoppers (8-6, 0-1 HC) were whistled for 35 fouls. Newman (3-7, 1-0 HC) capitalized going 46-of-54 from the free-throw line.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• After the first 12 minutes of action the Jets held a narrow 28-24 lead.
• Newman went on a 14-1 run over the next three minutes to open up a 17-point advantage.
• The lead stayed in double digits as the Jets went into the break with a 54-38 advantage.
• The home team's lead swelled to 79-61 at the 9:42 mark of the second half.
• St. Edward's used an 11-1 run over the next two minutes to cut the lead to eight points.
• The Hilltoppers dropped the deficit to eight points on two more occasions, but the Jets went 10-of-12 from the free-throw line in the final two minutes to keep St. Edward's at bay.

 
HILLTOPPER NOTES

• Senior JOHN GRAMLICH matched his season-high with 26 points on 9-of-16 shooting from the field. He was also a perfect 6-for-6 at the free-throw line.
• St. Edward's only turned the ball over six times while Newman tallied 20 turnovers.
• The Hilltoppers were outrebounded 49-34.
• Head Coach Andre Cook had won three-straight Heartland Conference openers before Saturday's loss.
• Cook has a 3-5 record in conference opening matchups at St. Edward's.
• St. Edward's holds a 12-8 record in the all-time series, but Newman has won two straight games.

 
QUOTE BOARD: HEAD COACH ANDRE COOK
"We are struggling right now. We are playing with little effort, energy, or enthusiasm. From the head coach down, we need to look in the mirror and figure out what we want from this season. I have enough of a sample size to realize we are underachieving at this point. I hope to see a better team on Monday."
 
UP NEXT
St. Edward's stays on the road in Heartland Conference play Monday against Panhandle State. Tipoff is set for 3 p.m. at Oscar Williams Field House in Goodwell, Okla. Live video and stats will be available at www.GoHilltoppers.com.
 
GAME INFORMATION
Score: Newman 108, St. Edward's 98
Records: St. Edward's (8-6, 0-1 HC), Newman (3-7, 1-0 HC)
Leading Scorers: St. Edward's-JOHN GRAMLICH (26), Newman-Taylor Schieber (24)
Attendance: 171

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