LAWTON, Okla. – The Texas A&M University-Commerce men's basketball team pulled away in the second half of action to take a 76-56 victory over Newman University on the second day of the LSC-Heartland Challenge at Cameron University on Saturday afternoon.
 
With the victory, the Lions are now 2-0 on the season, while Newman falls to 0-2.
 
A&M-Commerce is next in action on Tuesday night, hosting Our Lady of the Lake at 7 p.m. in the Field House.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- The Lions shot 48.3 percent (28-of-58) from the field in the contest, including a blistering 56.7 percent (17-of-30) in the second half. They were 22-of-36 (61.1 percent) on two-point attempts.
- Willie Rooks (Houston – North Forest) led all scorers with 21 points, also dishing out three assists and snagging two steals.
- Reggie Reid (Harlem, Ga.) scored 16 points, had five rebounds, and passed out a game-high four assists.
- Deonta Terrell (Chicago, Ill.) scored in double figures off the bench for the second game, netting 10 points. Tyree Robinson (Fall River, Mass.) had 10 rebounds.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
Newman scored the first points of the contest on a three-pointer, but Rooks drained a triple to tie the game a few seconds later. His second three-pointer of the game with just over two minutes gone put the Lions on top, as the teams battled back and forth in the early stages. The Lions never trailed again, but could only extend the lead to more than one possession at two points.
 
The Lions led 19-15 on a Reid trey with 6:24 left in the period, but the Jets responded with a three-pointer to cut the lead back to one point. Terrell's layup with 1:18 left in the half was the final score of the period, giving the Lions a 32-27 advantage. There were six ties in the half.
 
A&M-Commerce roared out of the halftime locker room to establish a large lead it wouldn't relinquish. After NU scored the first three points of the half to cut the lead to two points, the Lions went on a 15-2 run over a five-minute span to push the lead to 47-32. Trey Conrod (Kilgore) started the surge with a layup and Rodney Brown (Beaumont – West Brook) contributed with a three-pointer. A Reid bucket put the Lions up by double figures for the first time on the day, and Robinson sealed the run with a layup and a dunk to make it 49-34.
  The Lion lead would not shrink to fewer than 11 points the rest of the contest. Carson Tuttle (Mukilteo, Wash.) had a personal five-point run with six minutes to play, and the Lions would emphatically seal the victory with the game's last eight points. The trio of Robinson, Rooks, and Reid hit baskets down the stretch to earn the 20-point win.