DALLAS – A second half rally aided the SMU Mustangs in a 77-60 win over the Texas A&M University-Commerce men's basketball team on Monday night in Moody Coliseum, in the Lions' first Division I game.
 
Kalen Williams (Hephzibah, Ga.) tied the game at 40 with 13 minutes left in the game in his Lion debut. SMU scored 14 of the next 21 points to take a seven-point lead and extended the lead to 17 with 5:35 left in the game. The Mustangs' biggest lead of the game was 18 points, which came at the 1:55 mark in the second half.
 
The Lions trailed by just four points at the half, though SMU had a lead as high as eight in the first half. Zhuric Phelps had 28 points for SMU with 11 for 17 shooting and recorded five rebounds, three assists, a block, and a steal as well.
 
Demarcus Demonia (Fort Washington, Md.) played 37 minutes, while scoring 11 points and team-leading six rebounds. Williams shot 6 for 12 to total 13 points. Alonzo Dodd (St. Paul, Minn.) had eight points. Dodd, Khaliq Abdul-Mateen (Cy-Lakes), and Jerome Brewer, Jr. (Camden, N.J.) had five rebounds each.
 
Monday marked the first regular season game as a Lion for Williams, Dodd, Tommie Lewis (Vero Beach, Fla.), Brewer, Jr., C.J. Roberts (Irving – Richland), and Luka Vasic (Pirot, Serbia).


POST GAME INTERVIEW
 
UP NEXT
The Lions are on the road for their first six regular season games, coming in three different time zones. A&M-Commerce is next in action on Friday at Northern Colorado, with tip-off set for 7 p.m. mountain standard time.