Box Score

The Patriots Men's Basketball Team fell 90-71 to Texas A&M International University on Saturday at the Burg Center. DBU (6-10, 3-6) closes out its season-long home stand with a 2-3 stretch and snaps a two-game winning streak. The Dustdevils (15-4, 8-1) remain atop of the Heartland Conference with back-to-back victories.
 
A jumper close to the basket by junior, Chris Strong, got the Patriots on the board early and the home squad went up 4-0 on the first two possessions. However, TAMIU got going with its inside presence and forced nine unanswered points before redshirt freshman, Myles Johnson, ended the run.
 
Senior, Remy Ndiaye, poured in the next eight-straight DBU points that helped the team knot the score 14-14 at the 13:38 mark. The Dustdevils strung together an 11-0 run that put the visitors up 25-14 around the midway part of the frame.
 
Out of a DBU timeout, freshman, Jordan Pratt, silenced the streak with the first three-pointer on the afternoon for the Patriots. Senior, Cory Carden, drained a trifecta on the next basket to close the gap 25-20 with 9:05 minutes remaining until halftime.   
 
A free throw from sophomore, Jason Gentry, narrowed the deficit 27-25 at the 6:15 mark and teams would exchange baskets before TAMIU utilized another scoring stretch to close out the half. The Dustdevils outscored DBU 11-5 to go into intermission with a 41-34 advantage.
 
Out of the break, a 16-0 run turned the tide in favor of the Dustdevils and pushed the edge 57-34. Pratt notched DBU's first points in the second stanza at the 14:33 mark and stopped TAMIU's streak.    
 
The Patriots battled the rest of the way, but could never nip the margin and got outscored 49-37 in the second half.
 
Redshirt sophomore, Jonathan Perry, totaled a game-high 24 points, with 18 coming in the second frame. Ndiaye was right behind the team-scoring leader with 17 of his own. Johnson rounded out the scoring trio with 11, breaking into double figures for the fifth-straight game of the Arlington, Texas, native's rookie campaign.
 
Each team shot close to even from the field, with TAMIU hitting at 51-percent compared to the Patriots' 50-percent. A major difference occurred at the free throw line as the Dustdevils connected 85-percent. DBU only hit a 55-percent average from the charity stripe.
 
On the boards, the Patriots were outrebounded 28-25 and outscored 38-30 in the paint. An uncharacteristic stat for a DBU squad that ranks near the top in turnover margin, committed 16 that led to 27 Dustdevil points in the loss. The Patriots only forced eight miscues and were outdone 10-4 in steals.
 
TAMIU placed five players in double-digit scoring paced by Kevin Jefferson Jr. with 16 points. Damal Donaldson followed with 15, while Jordan Clark and Vadel Faniel chipped in 12 apiece. Matthew Culliver Jr. added 11 in the win.  

Dallas Baptist begins a four-game road trip, with all four contests coming against opposing Heartland Conference teams.  Up next for the Patriots is a Jan. 30th affair at St. Edward's University.  Game time is scheduled for 7 PM. On Feb. 1, the Patriots will travel to face McMurry University, with tip-off set for 2 PM.