COMMERCE, TEXAS – Poor shooting and rebounding spelled defeat for the Texas A&M-Kingsville men’s basketball team at Texas A&M-Commerce on Saturday. The Lions ran past the Javelinas to a 72-53 win. (box score)

The Lions (9-4) entered the game as the highest scoring team in the conference with over 86 points per game, but it was their defense that shined brightest against the Javelinas (5-7). The Lions forced the Hoggies into 20 turnovers and held them to just 36.5 percent shooting from the floor.

In the first half, the Lions led 23-16 with under seven minutes to play when they closed the half on a 12-2 run to take a 17-point advantage into halftime. They extended their lead to 24 points with 9:33 remaining in the game and never led by less than 13 points during the final period.

The Javelinas went 19-for-52 from the field, 5-for-21 from three-point range and 10-for-15 from the foul line. Antwan Mullins (Katy/Cinco Ranch HS) led the team with 12 points while Ricky Simon (La Marque/La Marque HS) and Reid Wallace (Spring/Tomball HS) each added 10 points. Marcus Ford (Colorado Springs, CO/Mesa Ridge HS) added nine points and a team high seven rebounds.

The Lions pulled down 11 more rebounds than the Javelinas and 15 offensive total offensive rebounds while shooting 49.1 percent from the field. They went 5-for-13 from three-point range and 15-for-19 at the foul line. Desmond King led all players with 23 points and eight boards. Tyris Dowell added 12 points and six rebounds while LaBree Sledge contributed 10 points off the bench.

The Javelinas are back in action on Wednesday at Eastern New Mexico to open the Lone Star Conference South Division schedule.
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