KINGSVILLE, Texas — The last time BLAKE NIELSEN was in Kingsville, St. Edward's point forward delivered a half-court heave in the closing seconds to down the Javelinas. In his final appearance at Steinke PE Center, Nielsen buried Texas A&M-Kingsville again in an 80-75 victory for the No. 19-ranked Hilltoppers. 
 
The reigning LSC Offensive Player of the Week followed last week's career-high 31-point performance with 24 points and eight rebounds, including a pair of clutch free throws to extend the Hilltopper lead to three in the closing seconds. 
 
Texas A&M-Kingsville led for most of the first half, opening with early energy and capitalizing on second-chance opportunities to build a nine-point advantage midway through the first half, getting four offensive boards from Daniel Sanchez and 13 total before the break to outscore St. Edward's 12-3 on second-chance points. But St. Edward's never allowed the game to spiral. 
 
Instead, the Hilltoppers leaned into their composure and leaned on senior forward JAMISON KAY. 
 
Like Nielsen, Kay has a history of heroics in Steinke, recording a steal and dunk in the closing seconds of last year's Hilltopper road wins. This time, Kay sparked an 11-0 run, scoring eight unanswered points, capped off by CONOR MCMANUS's 3-pointer to give the Hilltoppers a 32-30 lead. Kay followed Oriaku's dunk with another layup, then fed RYDER BRADLEY for a 3-pointer, dominating an eight-minute stretch with 10 points, four rebounds, and two assists. 
 
Nielsen balanced Kay's inside work with a flurry of 3-pointers, going 3-for-5 from deep in the first half, leading the Hilltoppers with 12 points, four rebounds, and two assists to lead the Hilltoppers to a 40-35 lead at the break. 
 
Kay opened the second half with a short jumper and an assist to MASON COURTNEY for a 3-pointer, extending the lead to 10. 
 
But the Javelinas responded with a 13-0 run, sparked by a 3-pointer from Allen Singleton and five unanswered points from Daniel Sanchez, to retake the lead at 46-45 on TJ Ford Jr.'s 3-pointer three minutes into the half.
 
Both teams traded baskets over the next 10 minutes, with MASON COURTNEY scoring six over that stretch, while the Javelinas struggled from deep, going 1-for-7. Nielsen took over down the stretch, working inside to convert on all three of his shots over two minutes, and drain a pair of free throws for a one-man 8-0 run to put the Hilltoppers up 10. 
 
Nate Garcia and Bryson Goldsmith brought the Javlinas close to all the way back, combining for 14 points on a 17-8 run. Freshman point guard RYDER BRADLEY answered the call with a pair of clutch driving layups, and the Hilltoppers turned to their two veteran forwards in the final two minutes, drawing up a perfectly executed high-low pass from Kay to Nielsen for a layup. 
 
Kay finished with 14 points, seven rebounds, four assists, and two steals, and Bradley and Courtney also scored 14 each, with Bradley adding five assists. 
 
The Hilltoppers improve to 19-4, including 8-4 in conference play. St. Edward's returns to action on Saturday in Laredo against Texas A&M International.