Box Score

The Dallas Baptist University Patriot Basketball Team knocked off the Rattlers from St. Mary's University Thursday evening, 80-72. The Patriots (17-9, 10-5) entered the evening one game behind the visiting Rattlers in the Heartland Conference race, but are now tied for second place, with only one game remaining before the conference tournament.

From the opening tip, the Patriots used the inside presence of Eddie Gloviak, Heath Wiechman, and Jordan McGowen to attack the basket. The aggressive post play resulted in 27 Rattler fouls, and 37 Patriot free throws.

Much like they have done all year at home, the Patriots opened up a quick 17-4 lead, after B.J. Dale's jumper at the 12:21 mark. The DBU offense was still rolling with two minutes left in the half, after Joe Carrington connected on a three on the assist from Gloviak, giving the Patriots their largest lead of the first half 34-18.

After holding a 37-24 lead at the break, the Patriots opened up the second half with another three by Bryan Baumann. The Patriots maintained their double-digit lead for the majority of the second half, and led by as much as 19, before St. Mary's put together a run of their own.

Trailing by 16 points with less than five minutes to play, St. Mary's scored seven unanswered, trimming their deficit to nine with 2:56 remaining. The Rattlers pulled to within six on three different occasions under a minute, but the Patriots responded with eight consecutive free throws to seal the eight point win.

Gloviak led all scorers on the night with 19 points and six rebounds. Baumann ended with a double-double, 14 points and 11 rebounds, while Braxton Adamson and McGowen chipped in 13 and 12, respectively.

“It was a hard fought game against a great team tonight,” Head Coach Blake Flickner said after the game. “St. Mary's played extremely hard in the second half and gave us a tough time on the boards, but I thought our guys defended really well tonight.”

The Patriots will host the University of the Incarnate Word on Saturday afternoon for the final home game of the season. Prior to the 2 o'clock tip-off, Dallas Baptist will hold a short ceremony, recognizing the three Patriot Seniors playing in their final game at the Burg Center.