KINGSVILLE– The Texas A&M University-Commerce men's basketball team defeated Texas A&M-Kingsville 80-77 on Thursday night. In a game that was back and forth throughout, the Lions held on in the final minutes to get the victory.
 
The win brings the Lions to 16-4 on the season and 8-2 in the Lone Star Conference. The Javelinas fall to 10-8 and 6-4 in conference play.
 
The Lions return to action on Saturday as they travel to San Angelo to face Angelo State. The game will be played at 4 p.m. at the Junell Center.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Willie Rooks (Houston – North Forest) led the Lions with 20 points. He made 7-of-11 shots. He also had a double-double with 13 rebounds.
- Reggie Reid (Harlem, Ga.) had 12 points and also had two steals.
- Deonta Terrell (Chicago, Ill.) just missed a double-double with nine points and 10 rebounds. Srdan Budimir (Karadjordjevo, Serbia) had 11 points.
- Trey Conrod (Kilgore) and Rodney Brown (Beaumont – West Brook) also had 10 points apiece.
- Both teams shot 42 percent from the field. The Lions made four more free throws than did the Javelinas.
 
HEAD COACH JARET VON ROSENBERG AFTER THE GAME
- On the team's ability to pull out the win: "We just found a way to win. It's what we talk about, just finding a way to win. It doesn't matter if it is by one point or 50. You just have to find a way to win. And that's a gutsy win for a team that has been going through injuries and things."
- On having guys step up after foul trouble and injury changed the lineup: "We needed other guys to step up. Reggie and Willie have been constants. For Willie to come up with 13 rebounds against a very good rebounding team was huge. Deonta coming off the bench came up with 10. Those are big plays that kept our lead."
- On the team's play: "That is the best game we have played from an execution standpoint. We were more patient offensively than we have been. That's a huge positive. We always talk about getting better as the season goes along. Offensively we really controlled the game better than we have sometimes. And we got enough stops. We got stops in spurts and got enough to come out on top."
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The first five minutes was a back-and-forth battle as both teams looked to establish themselves early. With five minutes gone in the game, the teams were tied at seven. The Lions then went on a run, with Reid getting a three and a three-point play. Two more threes gave the Lions a 12-point lead. Midway through the half, the Lions led by 10.
 
The Lions pushed their lead to 14 points before the Javelinas made a run to cut the Lion lead down to just two points at the half. The Lions went into halftime with a 38-36 lead.
 
Rooks led the team with 12 points and eight rebounds. Reid added eight points. The Lions shot 41 percent from three in the half.
 
After the Javelinas tied the game early in the second half, the Lions again went on a run, with Conrod hitting two buckets. The Lions once again took a double-figure lead. The Javelinas fought back to cut the lead back down to just one point and at the midway mark, the teams were tied once again.
 
Both teams went on mini runs before the Lions pushed their lead to eight points at the five minute mark. The teams traded free throws and baskets, with the Lions holding onto their lead. A couple turnovers down the stretch kept the Javelinas in the game but the Lions were able to hit their free throws and they left with the win.