GEORGETOWN, Texas — Southwestern men's basketball struggled to find its range in a 79-70 loss to the Howard Payne University Yellow Jackets in the season opener. 

Howard Payne made five more 3-pointers than Southwestern and five more free throws while the Pirates shot just 5-for-23 from deep (21.7 percent), tilting the math in their favor in a game that featured nine lead changes. 

Kyle Poerschke led the Pirates with 21 points on 10-for-20 shooting, getting to the basket off the dribble and moving away from the ball for several lobs. The Pirates' all-conference returner also contributed seven rebounds and two assists, connecting with teammate Chris Smith, Jr. on a spectacular alley-oop dunk on one play. 

Smith also finished in double figures for the Pirates with 17 points on 4-for-9 shooting, hitting one 3-pointer and 8-of-10 free throws. He also had eight rebounds and two steals. 

Myles Brown led Howard Payne with 17 points, hitting 4-for-10 from deep while teammate Reese Ridder scored nine points on 3-for-6 shooting from the 3-points line with multiple hustle plays, pulling down six rebounds with two steals. Frederick Watts was a force inside for the Yellow Jackets, especially in the second half where he scored 10 of his 13 points. Watts also had 12 rebounds, pulling down six on the offensive glass, tipping other shots out, and getting to the free-throw line for nine attempts, hitting 5. 

Both teams committed more turnovers than assists with the Pirates holding a 22-20 edge in points off turnovers. Howard Payne's bench outscored Southwestern's 24-18. 

Southwestern falls to 0-1 with the loss. The Pirates will hit the road on Tuesday to face the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor at 7:00 p.m.