THE RUNDOWN
The No. 3-ranked DBU Men's Basketball team suffered a heartbreaking 78–77 defeat on Friday night, as Colorado Mesa's Ty Allred drilled a three-pointer at the buzzer in the opening game of the South Central Region Challenge at the Burg Center. Junior guard Trevor Frank led the Patriots with 18 points, while the Mavericks' Cohen Gonzalez paced all scorers with 20.
 
In a tightly contested first half, the Patriots held a 44-42 lead over the Mavericks at the break. In the second half, Colorado Mesa surged ahead, building a seven-point lead with 10:22 remaining. The Patriots responded immediately, putting together a 7–0 run capped by an AJ Borden free throw to knot the score at 67.
 
The game remained deadlocked entering the final four minutes. TJ Thomas delivered at the line, sinking three free throws across two possessions to give DBU a three-point edge. The Patriots later held a 77–75 lead with 16 seconds on the clock, but a missed three from Borden as the shot clock wound down set the stage for the Mavericks' final possession.
 
After securing the defensive rebound, Allred pushed the ball up the floor. With the final seconds slipping away, he used a shot fake to create space at the top of the key and released the game-winner just before the buzzer.

THREE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW
- DBU has dropped their first three game for the first time in program history.
- Three Patriots scored in double digits including Trevor Frank (18), TJ Thomas (12), and Jackson McCabe (12).
- The game featured nine lead changes in a back-and-forth battle.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS
22 - DBU scored 22 points off of turnovers.
6 - The Patriots were just 6-of-30 from three-point range.
5 - Xavion Brown and Bishop Jones each grabbed a team-high five rebounds.
 
COMING UP NEXT
DBU faces Colorado Christian on Saturday at the Burg Center. Tip-off is scheduled for 3:00 p.m.

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