THE RUNDOWN
No. 25 DBU fell to Southern Nazarene 71-67 Saturday in Bethany, Oklahoma. The Patriots opened 2-12 from the floor while the Crimson Storm jumped out to a 24-7 lead that withstood a late Patriot rally. DBU (3-2) cut SNU's (4-1) lead to eight points four seperate times in the final minutes. The Patriots would finally catch fire from deep as SNU went ice cold from the charity stripe to turn an 18-point deficit into a two-possession game. 

After committing 10 turnovers in the first half, DBU surrendered the basketball just three times in the final 20 minutes. The Patriots outscored the Crimson Storm 43-36 in the second half as Ricky Lujan (14 points, 6-6 from the free-throw line) and Camerson Kahn (13 points, seven rebounds) carried the offensive duties for most of the game. For SNU, Manny Dixon and Xavier Bryant blasted DBU for a combined 34 points on 5-7 perimeter shooting. A pair of threes from Julian Miranda and Jack Johnson pulled the Patriots within four in the final three minutes. Johnson knocked down four of his last five shots to finish with a team-high 17 points on an efficient 6-10 shooting.

THREE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW 
-DBU falls to 1-2 against the Great American Conference.
-Jack Johnson's 17 point performance is a season-high.
-With 10 points against the Crimson Storm, Austin Garner has finished in double figures in three of the first four games.

COACH BLAKE FLICKNER ON THE TEAM'S FIGHT 
"I was proud of how our guys battled until the very end. Unfortunately we dug ourselves in a hole early with too many turnovers early in the game. After about the first 12 minutes or so, I thought we started doing a better job of taking care of the ball. Guys adjusted well and we started getting better possessions on offense, but against a great team like SNU, it's tough to come from behind."

"We went and scheduled a tough schedule this year against some top teams, and right now we're learning a lot. We've just got to stay focused on the process of improving each day so we're playing our best at the end of the year." 

INSIDE THE NUMBERS 
24 - DBU received a 24 point boost from its bench.
4 - Ricky Lujan snagged a game-high four steals.
27- The Patriots grabbed a season-high 27 defensive rebounds. 

UP NEXT
No. 25 DBU continues its road trip against Arkansas-Fort Smith on Thursday, December 2.