THE RUNDOWN
In a wire-to-wire affair, DBU (15-13, 10-10 LSC) pulled off a narrow victory over UT Permian Basin (14-16, 7-14 LSC), 63-58. Cameron Kahn (13 points, 9 rebounds) finished 1 board shy of a double-double.
 
The Falcons owned the lead for the opening minutes of the game but never by more than 5 points. At the 15:50 mark, Jalen White put in a dunk to spark a 15-5 run for the Patriots. UTBP tied the game at 25 with just under 7 minutes to go, and the two teams played nearly even basketball for the remainder of the opening frame. 
 
Ricky Lujan's 12 points were the most by a Patriot in the half, but his dozen was met by a pair of 10-point performances by DaJuan Jones and Max Warren for the Falcons.
 
The second half was played much like the first. Tied at the half, UTPB once again had a small advantage to start the period, but never extended it beyond a two-possession difference. After evening the score on three occasions, DBU took the lead, 55-54, on a three-pointer by Ricky Lujan. 
 
Like the Falcons, the Patriots fought to stay on top, but despite a pair of Keyon Craddock free throws to make the margin only one, DBU did not surrender the reigns and held on for an important win in the late stages of the season.
 
THREE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW
- The Patriots improve to 6-6 in games decided by 5 or fewer points.
- Despite the win, DBU remains one spot outside the LSC Tournament.
- The score was tied on 10 different occasions, and the lead changed hands 9 times.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
9 - The starting five for the Patriots (Ta'Jay Dunlap, Carson Hughes, Cameron Kahn, Ricky Lujan, Jalen White) each scored at least 9 points.
13 - Only 13 turnovers were committed in the game.
47 - Both DBU and UTBP shot better than 47% from the field.
 
BLAKE FLICKNER ON THE CONTRIBUTIONS FROM JALEN WHITE AND WILL HEATHER
"Really gutty win today on the road. Really proud of the way the guys stepped up in the second half. Jalen came alive from [three-point territory] and forced them to go small. And then Will was able to step up and give us some great minutes down the stretch. Our team was 'plus 7' in his eleven and a half minutes. So excited for these guys. Excited to come back home and honor our seniors on Thursday."
 
UP NEXT
The Patriots head back to Dallas for their last home game of the season. Tip-of is on Thursday, February 23, at 7:00 pm in the Burg Center.
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