AUSTIN, Texas – St. Edward's had an impressive season opener for the home crowd, posting a 93-67 win over Colorado Christian Friday evening.

The Hilltoppers charged out to a nine point lead, 19-10, six and a half minutes into the contest. Colorado Christian pulled within five before SEU exploded for a 12-2 run thanks in large part to the sharp shooting of SEAN PHILLIPS who drained four of his first five three pointers, posting 14 points in the first nine minutes.

Within the blink of an eye the Hilltopper lead ballooned to 22, 43-21, with just over three minutes remaining in the half. SEU took a 21-point advantage into the locker room, 49-28.

Things quickly got out of hand as the second half got underway. Less than eight minutes into the frame the lead was up to 30, 68-38. The Hilltoppers led by as many as 35 and with the win never in doubt confidently closed out the game.

Phillips ended with 20 points on 7-11 shooting from the field and 6-10 from three point range to lead all scorers. ASHTON SPEARS added 11 as did JAMES TAYLOR who made the most of his 14 minutes on the floor. DORIAN LOPEZ was just one board shy of a double-double to open the season, posting 10 points and nine rebounds.

As a team, the Hilltoppers committed just four turnovers while out-rebounding the Cougars 37-36.

St. Edward's improves to 1-0 on the year and return to action on Saturday, facing Colorado Mesa at 4 pm.