Box Score A&M-Commerce 88, UT-Permian Basin 82
Aggie Gym - Lawton, Okla.
Records: A&M-Commerce (1-0), UT-Permian Basin (0-1)
Up Next: vs. Oklahoma Panhandle State - Saturday, Nov. 9 - 8 p.m.

LAWTON, Okla. -- Paced by a career-high 22 points from senior guard Tyrie Wooten, A&M-Commerce outlasted UT-Permian Basin for an opening night 88-82 victory at the Region Classic, hosted by Cameron. The Lions notch a victory in the season-opener for the second-straight season, improving to 3-0 all-time against the Falcons.

Wooten led the way offensively for the Lions, hitting six of his 12 shots, including four-of-seven from three-point range, while knocking down six of his nine free throw attempts to log the career-high 22. Wooten also added six rebounds on the night for the Lions.

Four other Lions finished in double figures on the evening, including senior Devondrick Walker recording 12 points and five rebounds with a pair of assists. Senior transfer Kameron Price added 11 points, going a crucial nine-of-12 from the free throw line, with seven rebounds while newcomers LaDon Carnegie and Nick Ross each finished with 10 points in their Lion debuts.

Junior transfer Christian Macauley pulled down a team-high 13 rebounds for A&M-Commerce, including six offensive boards, while adding eight points and a pair of blocks. Ross and junior Daniel West led the way with five assists each for A&M-Commerce.

As head coach Sam Walker began his 14th season at the helm of the Lions, A&M-Commerce came out strong in its 2013-14 season opener, holding the lead for the majority of the game but never able to pull away from the Falcons. After UTPB established its only lead of the game at 5-2 early in the first, the Lions responded with an 8-0 run to go on top 10-5.

But despite having the advantage, the Falcons never made it easy on the Lions. Leading by four at 16-12 midway through the opening half, A&M-Commerce saw UT-Permian basin string together a 6-1 run of its own to reclaim the lead at 18-17. As it did all night, however, the Lions would answer the Falcons run with one of its own, slowly building a five-point cushion at 30-25.

The Falcons answered with another 6-0 run, reclaiming the lead at 31-30 with just over five minutes remaining in the opening half. The two teams would battle down the stretch as with the score tied 34-34 in the waning seconds, Walker hit a crucial three-pointer to give A&M-Commerce the 37-34 halftime edge.

The Lions carried that momentum into the second half, building their largest lead of the game at 48-40 with just over five minutes gone. That eight-point cushion proved to be the A&M-Commerce watermark on the evening as the Lions hit that lead five other times in the second half, but were unable to break the game open.

UT-Permian Basin showed its resiliency all evening, trimming the A&M-Commerce lead to just one on a pair of occasions in the second half. But the Falcons were unable to get the key baskets that would give them the lead as the Lion defense was able to force key turnovers and bad shots at crucial times, helping A&M-Commerce preserve the 88-82 victory.

The Falcons held a better shooting percentage on the night, hitting 43.8 percent of their shots compared to just 41.9 percent for the Lions. Both teams were near equal in three-point attempts, but the edge in the game came down to free throw shooting as A&M-Commerce hit 18 of its 27 free throws (66.7 percent), compared to just nine out of 21 for UT-Permian Basin (42.9 percent).

Up next for A&M-Commerce is a battle with Oklahoma Panhandle State tomorrow night at 8 p.m. The game against the Aggies marks the final game of the 2013 Region Classic, hosted by Cameron, with links to live stats and live video available at LionAthletics.com.