GEORGETOWN, TEXAS - Men's Basketball came into their game against McMurry on a three-game losing streak, not counting their loss to DII St. Edwards. It would be a good opportunity for the Pirates to secure their second win of the season against a War Hawks team that was o 0-4 on the season.
Both teams were evenly matched throughout the contest, the Pirates shot 90 percent at the free throw line, but this was balanced out by the War Hawks' almost 47 percent field goal percentage. The War Hawks owned an eight-point, 41-33, lead heading into halftime. The difference was the twelve points the War Hawks gained from eight Southwestern turnovers. On the flip side, McMurry only gave up the ball three times in the first half and was led by a 20-point first-half performance from War Hawk guard CJ LeBlanc.
LeBlanc couldn't miss from behind the three-point line and went on to score 44 points against the Pirates. However, Southwestern cleaned up the turnovers in the second half and scored fourteen points off of eight McMurry turnovers in the final twenty minutes of the game.
Junior guard Jacob Hester took over the game for the Pirates coming out of halftime. Hester only had five points after the first twenty minutes but scored sixteen in the second half, going 100 percent at the free throw line for the game and 57 percent on three-point shots.
The Pirates went 22-25 at the free throw line and spread the ball around in a complete team effort. Down ten points with nine minutes remaining, Southwestern clawed their way back and led the game 79-78 with just over two minutes left. Clutch free throws from the Pirates down the stretch ensured the Pirates the victory. Four Pirates, Hester, Sam Lacy, Preston Hannah, and Luke Hatcher, scored double-digit points helping overcome the eight-point halftime deficit to gain a hard-fought 89-85 win.
The Pirates travel to Sherman, Texas, to face Austin College on December 2nd at 8:00 PM.