TYLER, Texas – Three different players scored in double figures for the Texas A&M-Kingsville men's basketball team, but a late foul called against the Javelinas with 1.1 seconds remaining handed the UT Tyler Patriots the opportunity to score the winning points and steal a 63-62 decision on Saturday evening in Lone Star Conference action at the Louise Herrington Patriot Center in Tyler, Texas.

For the first time in 2021-22, the Javelinas have dropped consecutive games and are now 10-6 overall and 1-4 in the LSC. UTT is 12-6 and 4-5 in the conference.

"I'm proud of my team," said coach Johnny Estelle. "These are some special young men that work extremely hard for this university. My heart breaks for them because I know their commitment. As for the game, it was a hard fought game that could have gone either way."

This defeat came despite a few excellent performances for the Blue and Gold, led by sophomore Jake Majors (Corpus Christi, Texas), who set a career-high with 24 points. Majors was 7-of-9 from the field and 6-of-8 from beyond the arc on a night when he led all scorers.

"Jake Majors was absolutely amazing tonight," said Estelle. "I thought his teammates did a good job finding him all night and he delivered. That's a tribute to him and our team."

Freshman Marcus Jones (Cheneyville, Texas) cracked double figures for the second straight game, scoring 12 points and hitting 5-of-6 from the floor. Junior Creighton Avery (Corpus Christi, Texas) set a career high with seven assists, also a game-high, and added 10 points.

The Hogs erased a first-half deficit that grew as large as 10 points and they found themselves trailing by as many as nine early in the second half at 37-28. TAMUK earned its first lead of the night thanks to a 10-2 burst that included two treys from Majors and was capped by a Will Chayer (Corpus Christi, Texas) layup.

The lead changed hands several times after the Javelinas' run, with UTT going ahead by four following a pair of foul shots with 2:38 on the clock. Avery then came up clutch with back-to-back buckets to tie the score, only for UTT to respond with a three-point play for a 61-58 advantage with a minute to play.  

Two Majors foul shots, a Patriot shot clock violation and a pair from the charity stripe from Avery put the visitors back ahead by one with eight seconds remaining, but the game's final foul provided UTT with the chance to score winning points.

"We hope to have everyone back, regroup next week," said Estelle, "and get back to playing Javelina basketball."

On Thursday, TAMUK returns home for a 7:30 p.m. matchup against St. Edward's on Gold Rush Night. All fans in attendance are encouraged to wear gold to support Javelina basketball. Fans can keep up with Javelina men's basketball throughout the season by following @JavelinaMBB on Twitter and Instagram, liking Texas A&M University-Kingsville Men's Basketball on Facebook, subscribing to the Javelina Athletics YouTube channel and visiting Javelinaathletics.com.

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