Lions Use 16-0 Run to Defeat Southeastern Oklahoma State, 81-71

A 16-0 run midway through the second half led host Texas A&M University-Commerce to an 81-71 win over Southeastern Oklahoma State on Saturday afternoon at The Field House in men's basketball action.

A&M-Commerce (17-7, 6-3 LSC North) junior Brian Singleton scored a team-high 20 points to pace the Lions. Sophomore Brad Hambrick and senior Ronnie Morgan added 18 and 13 points, respectively. Morgan and freshman Preston Whitley each had seven rebounds and senior Cardell Hunter had seven assists.

Southeastern Oklahoma State (9-15, 4-5 LSC North) had all five of its starters in double figures. Mychal Horn led the Savage Storm with a team-high 20. Darrell Hicks added 14, Chibuzo Elonu scored 13, and Chris Roussell and William Slones chipped in 11 and 10 points, respectively.

In his first start, Whitley gave the home team an early 4-0 advantage. However, SOSU answered with 15 of the next 17 to take a 15-6 advantage at the 14:35 mark. The visitors kept the lead until Hambrick hit the first of four 3 pointers to tie the game at 31 with 4:56 left in the opening stanza. A&M-Commerce scored the next six points and held the Savage Storm off the scoreboard for a 37-31 halftime advantage.

After the intermission, SOSU scored the first nine points of the second half including two 3 pointers for a 40-37 lead with 18:08 left in the game. Eventually, the Savage Storm went up by a 47-42 margin when Elonu made both free throws with 15:27 to go.

Singleton sparked a 16-0 run by the Lions as he hit scored five-straight points, followed up by a dunk by Morgan back-to-back 3 pointers by Hambrick that energized the home team and the home crowd. The run was punctuated by a break-away dunk by freshman Tyris Dowell to put A&M-Commerce ahead 61-47 with 11:41 to go.

SOSU came back with seven straight points and eventually got the deficit down to four with 5:23 remaining. After Horn hit a 3 pointer to trim the lead to 68-64, A&M-Commerce scored eight of the next 10 points including a 3 pointer each by Singleton and Hambrick ended any chances for a SOSU comeback.

The Lions are back in action on Wednesday against LSC North Division leader Central Oklahoma in Edmond at 8 p.m.