AUSTIN, Texas – The St. Edward's men's basketball team overcame a slow start by playing hard for the full 40 minutes to gain a 76-73 victory over UT-Permian Basin Thursday at the Recreation and Convocation Center.
UT-Permian Basin (11-10, 6-7 HC) led 7-0 before the Hilltoppers would get their first points of the game, on a set of free throws by
RAMIR BURTON.
St. Edward's (15-6, 8-5 HC) would trail until 6:13 left in the first half when a pair of three pointers by
JAMES TAYLOR brought the score to 25-all. After Taylor sank two free throws, the Hilltoppers had their first lead, 29-27 with 3:52 on the clock.
The visitors would battle back down the stretch as the Falcons regained the lead at 40-29.
In the second half, the Hilltoppers fought back with an 10-2 run to open the half and get within one point with 15:45 left in the second half. From then on, neither team would lead by more than six points.
As both teams fought for the lead down the stretch, St. Edward's stole it for good with 2:53 left in the game after a set of layups by
FRANKIE MGBOLU and
RAMIR BURTON. Waiting for the Falcons to foul
AUBRIE KING,
QUINTON LILLEY were left open for easy layups to put the game away.
The leading scorer of the night was Burton, who was 7-for-12 from the field, accumulating 19 points. Mgbolu tallied a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Taylor drained three key three pointers and went 3-for-6 from the line for a total of 12 points off of the bench.
"One thing about our team is we always keep our composure," Mgbolu said. "We are never out of a game. UTPB likes to play up and down the floor, but we played our pace tonight and we were able to control the game late after that start we had."
UT-Permian Basin outrebounded St. Edward's, 45-26, but also doubled the amount of turnovers. The Hilltoppers capitalized and made 20 points off turnovers compared to only seven by the Falcons. St. Edward's leads the nation in turnover margin as they average only 11.5 miscues a game, while forcing its opponents into 18.7 turnovers per contest.
St. Edward's will be back in action Saturday when they travel to take on Heartland Conference leader Dallas Baptist. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. at the Burg Center in Dallas, Texas. Live video and stats will be available on the Patriot Athletic Website.
| Heartland Conference Standings | | |
| Team | HC | OVERALL |
| Dallas Baptist | 9-3 | 15-5 |
| Rogers State* | 9-4 | 17-4 |
| UA Fort Smith | 9-4 | 16-5 |
| Lubbock Christian | 9-4 | 15-6 |
| TAMU-International | 9-4 | 14-7 |
| St. Edward's | 8-5 | 15-6 |
| UT-Permian Basin | 6-7 | 11-10 |
| Newman | 4-8 | 11-9 |
| St. Mary's | 4-9 | 8-13 |
| Oklahoma Christian | 2-11 | 5-16 |
| Panhandle State | 1-11 | 8-12 |
| *-Not Eligible for Postseason Play | | |
| | |
| Thursday, February 4 | | |
| St. Edward's def. UT-Permian Basin, 76-73 | |
| Lubbock Christian def. Oklahoma Christian, 64-59 | |
| Newman def. Panhandle State, 82-68 | |
| Rogers State def. St. Mary's, 74-57 |
| UA Fort Smith def. TAMU-International, 84-81 |
| | |
| Saturday, February 6 | | |
| St. Edward's at Dallas Baptist | | 2:00 PM |
| Panhandle State at Oklahoma Christian | | 3:00 PM |
| St. Mary's at UA Fort Smith | | 3:00 PM |
| TAMU-International at Rogers State | | 3:00 PM |
| Lubbock Christian at Newman | 3:00 PM |
| | |
| Monday, February 8 | |
| UT-Permian Basin at Dallas Baptist | 7:00 PM |
