Grand Junction, Colo. – The A&M-Commerce men's basketball team used a 43-point second half and suffocating defense to improve to 3-1 on the season after a 77-62 win over Western State Friday night in the opening game of the Holiday Inn-Airport Thanksgiving Classic.

Turning Point
- With the game knotted at 50 with 11:01 on the clock in the second half, the Lions strung together an 18-2 run over the next seven minutes to a 68-52 lead and control of the contest.
 
Highlights
- Jeremy Jones led the Lions with 18 points highlighted by a 4-for-4 performance from behind the three-point arc.  Jones was one rebound shy of a double-double.
 
- Anthony Adams chipped in with 14 points and a game-high four assists.
 
- Ronnie White recorded a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds.
 
- All nine Lions that played recorded points in the win.
 
- After turning the ball over nine times in the first half, A&M-Commerce only suffered five turnovers in the second 20 minutes. All told, the Lions had 14 turnovers resulting in four Mountaineer points, while Western State had 10 turnovers that led to 10 Lions points.
 
- A&M-Commerce controlled the glass out rebounding Western State 52-41. The Lions took advantage of 14 offensive rebounds to score 15 points.
 
Quotable
"We guarded and protected the ball a lot better in the second half. That turned out to be the difference in the game."– A&M-Commerce head coach Sam Walker.
 
Summary
1st Half
- A&M-Commerce opened up a nine-point lead, 19-10, midway through the half thanks to six early points from Jones on two made threes.
 
- The Lions defense kept the lead with A&M-Commerce until Western State turned a 29-22 deficit into a tie at 32 with nine seconds left in the half following a 10-3 run over a four and a half minute span.
 
- Following a Lion timeout, Jo'Vone Haynes hit a cutting JR Owens for an open layup to give the Lions a 34-32 lead heading into the intermission.
 
- A&M-Commerce spent 15:28, 77 percent of play, with the lead in the first half.
 
2nd Half
- The two teams traded the lead for the first nine minutes of the half, before the Lions mounted an 8-0 run sparked by a pair of triples from Adams to take a 58-50 lead with 8:02 remaining.
 
- After a Mountaineer basket, the Lions took control of the game with 10-0 run to take a 16 point lead, 68-52, with 4:48 left to play.  The run was all the Lions needed to cruise to the 77-62 win.
 
- After shooting 41 percent from the floor in the first half, the Lions heated up to 48 percent, while limiting the Mountaineers to 29 percent in the second half.
 
Inside the box score
- White nabbed his second double-double of the season and second in as many games with his 12 points and 12 rebounds Friday. He had 15 points and 14 rebounds in the Lions last game against Huston-Tilloston.
 
- Jones' 18 points was a season-high.
 
What's Next?
- A&M-Commerce turns around Saturday and will tipoff against tournament host Colorado Mesa at 8 p.m.  The Lions and Mavericks have never gone toe-to-toe on the hardwood.
 
Fans can follow all the action from the 2015-16 season on www.LionAthletics.com, through twitter @Lion_Athletics and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/LionsAthletics.