AUSTIN, Texas – The St. Edward's Hilltoppers men's basketball team closed the calendar year with a dominant first half, solid defense, and excellent ball movement to lead from start to finish in defeating the Texas A&M International Dustdevils 88-72. 

The opening half was a contrast in styles that the Hilltoppers won thoroughly, shooting a blistering 19-for-33 (57.6 percent) from the field, including 6-for-11 (54.5 percent) from deep while limiting the Dustdevils to 14-for-30 shooting (46.7 percent). 

Playing without leading scorer JEFF GARY due to illness, the Hilltoppers moved BLAKE NIELSEN into the starting lineup. They also swapped three-and-D reserve wing BENNETT MOHN for versatile combo forward MASON HIX to balance the lineups. 

The result was a solid defensive starting unit that neutralized Texas A&M International's actions and broke them down into their components. The Dustdevils ran a series of dribble handoffs and screens to try and find favorable matchups. However, far too often, the offense bogged down into contested pull-up jumpers, with Mohn and UCHE DIBIAMAKA not allowing dribble penetration. 

The off-the-dribble shooting talents of Jermain Drewey and Shea Rax were enough to carry the Dustdevils through stretches. Still, the steady diet of contested, off-the-dribble midrange jumpers wasn't enough to sustain any threatening runs. 

On the other end, the motion of the Hilltoppers' offense constantly forced the Dustdevils to make multiple decisions and rotations on any given possession. 

The Hilltoppers ran multiple simultaneous actions to create tension for the defense, sending one off-ball cutter to the rim while bringing a shooter through off-ball screens in the opposite direction. When the Hilltoppers couldn't find horizontal spacing by spreading the defense out, it moved to the vertical plan, taking advantage of SEAN ELKINTON's size inside for four interior baskets and a pick-and-pop 3-pointer for 11 first-half points on 5-for-6 shooting. 

Nielsen added seven points on eight shots and three assists in the half, and starters Mohn and GAVINO RAMOS scored six each. Reserve big JAYLEN GORDON provided quality possessions, scoring six points on three shots with two offensive rebounds in six minutes. 

St. Edward's assisted on 11 of its 19 made field goals to lead 45-29 at the break. 

Texas A&M International managed to muddy the game with its physicality in the second half, working inside to put the Hilltoppers in the bonus early and supplementing its long 2-pointers with a feast at the free-throw line, where it shot 17-for-21 after the break. The emphasis on drawing contact was a dramatic turnaround after the Dustdevils failed to get to the charity stripe for a single attempt in the first half. 

It was enough for the Dustdevils to play the Hilltoppers on even terms in the second half but not enough to make much of a dent in their deficit, getting only as close as 15 points while trailing by as much as 28 after the break. 

Dibiamaka exploded for 15 of his team-high 20 points after the break, mixing in pull-up jumpers, cuts, driving layups, and post-ups to finish the game 7-for-15 from the field in a dazzling display in front of his parents, who traveled from Australia to watch their first game at the Hilltop. 

Mohn hit a trio of 3-pointers in the second half to finish with 15 points, hitting 4-for-8 from deep. Ramos added 14 points on seven shots, Elkinton added three assists to his 11 points to round out the Hilltoppers in double figures, while Nielsen filled out the box score with eight rebounds, seven points, and five assists. 

Drewey led Texas A&M International with 16 points on 5-for-6 shooting, and Tiras Morton added 10 for the Dustdevils, who shot respectably from the field (46.4 percent) but were outscored 33-9 from beyond the 3-point line. 

St. Edward's improves to 11-3 with a 5-0 conference record after the win. The Hilltoppers will host Texas A&M - Kingsville on Sunday at 3:00 p.m.