OKLAHOMA CITY – The Texas A&M University-Commerce men's basketball team held off a late charge from Oklahoma Christian University on Sunday afternoon to hold on for an 80-78 win in the Eagles' Nest on the OC campus.
 
The Lions are now 6-5 on the season and in the Lone Star Conference, while Oklahoma Christian falls to 4-11 overall and in the LSC.
 
This was the first of four games in six days for the Lions, who are next in action on Tuesday, February 23, at 1 p.m. at Angelo State.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Augustine Ene (Carrollton – Creekview) led the Lions with 21 points and nine rebounds, including a 10-of-10 performance at the free throw line.
- JJ Romer Rosario (Hialeah Gardens, Fla.) scored 14 points off the bench on perfect 6-of-6 shooting, including a pair of three-pointers.
- Carson Tuttle (Mukilteo, Wash.) scored 12 points and dished out seven assists.
- The Lions shot 44.3 percent (27-of-61) from the floor and scored 17 points off of 10 Eagle turnovers. A&M-Commerce had 17 assists against nine turnovers.
 
HEAD COACH JARET von ROSENBERG AFTER THE GAME
On the win after the long layoff:
"We talked about handling adversity because this week is going to be tough. At the end of the day, we've got to do better in that late game situation, but it was still really good stuff. The guys stayed with it and battled, got tough rebounds at the end, and knocked down some free throws. We'll take that win."
 
On the late-game defensive situations:
"With the late clock and the possessions they [OC] needed to win, we had just enough right there to make it really hard. They made a valiant effort at it, making some crazy shots, but I'm happy for our guys getting the W. They'd put a lot of effort into getting ready for this game."
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The first half was tightly contested throughout, with six ties and five lead changes, and neither team able to take a lead of more than two possessions. The Lions fell behind early, conceding the first five points of the contest before responding with an 8-0 run. Alex Peavy (Smithson Valley) layed a shot in followed by triples from Ene and Leo Lara (Santa Rosa) for an early 8-5 lead.
 
A run of OC free throws allowed the Eagles to stretch the lead to five points before Romer Rosario scored six straight to give the Lions a 26-25 advantage with 6:53 to go in the half. The Eagles led by six points with 3:28 to play in the period, but A&M-Commerce scored the final eight points of the half, including a big dunk by Donald Ghostone (Grand Prairie) to send the Lions to the locker room with a 36-34 lead.
 
The Lions had only two turnovers in the half and scored nine points off of five OC turnovers. TAMUC shot 40.6 percent (13-of-32) in the period and Ene's nine points led all scorers at the break.
 
A&M-Commerce carried the momentum in the second half, opening the period on a 12-4 run in the first four minutes of the half. Ene bookended the run with three-pointers, and the Lions led 48-38 with 16 minutes on the clock.
 
OC responded with a 13-4 rally over the next five minutes, cutting the Lion advantage down to one point at 52-51 with 11:08 left. Lara and Ene combined for five points before another eight-point Eagle rally gave the hosts a 59-57 lead with 6:37 to go.
 
Tuttle and Rodney Brown (Beaumont – West Brook) scored consecutive baskets to give the Lions the lead, and Romer Rosario's three-pointers gave the Lions a five-point edge. Tuttle had a personal five-point run to put the Lions ahead by seven points at 73-66, and four straight Ene free throws made it an eight-point game at 77-69 in the final 30 seconds.
 
Oklahoma Christian started launching three-pointers in the final seconds, and made three, but the Lions saw Demarcus Demonia (Fort Washington, Md.) connect on three free throws in the final seconds to seal the win.