GEORGETOWN, Texas — Playing Trinity for the first time since January 2020, the Southwestern men's basketball team struggled against the Tigers' swarming defense and red-hot shooting in a 92-73 loss. 

Trinity came at Southwestern in waves on both sides of the court, engineering a balanced attack led by Enzo Sechi's 16 points. Jordan Lippman was the only other Tiger in double-figure scoring with 14 points on a perfect 5-for-5 shooting performance. Fourteen different Tigers scored on a roster that played 21 players.

The Tigers moved the ball effortlessly on offense, assisting on 27 of their 33 made field goals, shooting 33-for-60 from the field (55.0 percent), including 12-for-31 from the 3-point line (38.7 percent) and 12-for-13 at the free-throw line. 

The Tigers were just as sharp on the other end, extending their defense the length of the court, moving their feet, and extending long arms to shrink driving and passing windows. 

Southwestern committed 10 turnovers in the first half, at times making the correct read but rushing the pass while Trinity jumped out to a 39-24 lead. The Pirates answered with a brief scoring binge by Jacob Hester, who hit back-to-back 3-pointers, giving Southwestern some life to pull within nine. However, Trinity responded with a 5-0 run before Preston Hannah hit a three with five seconds remaining in the half, leaving Trinity with a 44-33 lead. 

In the second half, Trinity continued its relentless defensive pressure, recording six steals and extending its largest lead at 23 with 7:39 remaining, keeping the Pirates at bay the rest of the way. 

Preston Hannah led Southwestern with 15 points and six assists. Zac Black added 14 points on nine shots with six rebounds, and Jacob Hester finished with 11 points off the bench. 

Southwestern drops to 5-11 with a 2-5 conference record, while Trinity improves to 15-3, including a 7-2 record in conference play. On Friday, the Pirates will travel to Seguin, Texas, to face the Texas Lutheran Bulldogs at 5:30 p.m.