Canyon – West Texas A&M shot a blistering 71 percent from the field in the second half, breaking up a tied game at halftime on its way to a 76-67 win over Texas A&M-Kingsville.

   The loss dropped the Javelinas to 15-7 overall and 2-5 in LSC South Division play.  West Texas won their fourth consecutive game and improved to 14-8 and 6-2 in league play.

   Rickey Huckaby led the Javelinas with 11, but he was the only player in double figures for Texas A&M-Kingsville.

   The Javelinas shot 52 percent from the floor in the first half as the two teams entered the locker room tied at 30.

   It was still a one point game, 43-42 West Texas A&M with 12:23 left in game.

   The Buffaloes then put together a difference-making 12-2 run to grab a 55-44 with 9:24 remaining.

   West Texas A&M built its lead to 15, 66-51 with 5:26 left, but the Javelinas chipped away at the lead and crawled back into the game.

   Eddie Lopez’s 3-point shot with 45 seconds remaining cut the advantage to six, 71-65, but the Buffaloes made five consecutive free throws down the stretch to close out the game.

  "We had a couple of turnovers and they hit some big shots," said Javelina head coach Pete Peterson.  "When it is this tight a game, you almost have to play a flawless game.  They had 14 more free throws than we did.  We hung our heads just for a second and that’s all it takes.  Our effort was great; it just took two or three minutes and that all it took.  We had some good looks in the second half; they just didn’t go down.  It seems like every time we had something going, there was always something that would happen.  We just couldn’t put that run together.  We just need a break."

   Reggie Love came off the bench to score nine points, Eddie Lopez had eight and freshman Dominick Jones added seven as the Javelina bench outscored the West Texas A&M bench 34-18.  But the Buffaloes had a significant advantage at the free throw line, making 22 of 29 free throws while the Javelinas were 8-of-13 from the free throw line.

   The Javelinas will face Eastern New Mexico Saturday afternoon in Portales.