COMMERCE – After falling behind 9-0 to start the game, the Texas A&M University-Commerce men's basketball team outscored the Lamar Cardinals, 81-55, the rest of Saturday afternoon to cruise to an 81-66 win in the Field House.
 
The Lions had a lead as big as 23 in the game and led by 11 at the half, despite Lamar scoring the first nine points of the game. A&M-Commerce improves to 7-12 overall and 3-2 in Southland Conference play, while the Cardinals are 5-13 overall and 1-4 in Southland play.
 
A&M-Commerce was held without a point for the first 4:21 of the game but scored four in a row and tied the game at 21 on layup by Luka Vasic (Pirot, Serbia) at the 7:07 mark of the first half. The Lions did not trail again in the game, nor was the game tied again. The 9-0 run by the Lions gave them a 26-21 lead.
 
The largest lead of the first half for either team was 12 points by the Lions, and it came with 12 seconds left in the half on a jumper by JJ Romer Rosario (Hialeah Gardens, Fla.). Demarcus Demonia (Fort Washington, Md.) knocked down a three pointer with 6:02 left in the game to give the Lions a 72-49 lead, their largest of the game. The Lions' lead was not in single digits at any point in the second half.
 
Demonia scored 20 points, followed by 15 points each from Romer Rosario and Jerome Brewer, Jr. (Camden, N.J.), both came off the bench. Kalen Williams (Augusta, Ga.) scored 15 as well as six assists, five rebounds, and one steal.
 
Alonzo Dodd (St. Paul, Minn.) recorded six rebounds, six assists, two points, and a steal, while Ant Abraham (Mt. Vernon, N.Y.) had team-best seven assists. Every Lion that dressed for Saturday's game, appeared in the game.
 
A&M-Commerce shot 48.3 percent from the field, 48.1 percent with 13 three pointers made, which are the most for the Lions in conference play. They made 14 against Arlington Baptist.
 
Lamar's Yuto Yamanouchi scored 18 and recorded a double-double with 11 rebounds.


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The Lions are back on the road for two games next weekend in Louisiana, playing New Orleans on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. and Southeastern Louisiana on Saturday at 3:30 p.m.