WICHITA FALLS, Texas – After two weeks since playing in its last game, the Angelo State men's basketball team was unable to come away with a win of the road, falling to Midwestern State 84-75 on Saturday night.
The Rams move to 5-9 overall on the year, and 5-9 in Lone Star Conference play while Midwestern State improves to 9-7 overall and 8-7 in the LSC.
Both teams remained close throughout the night with neither team taking a lead larger than nine points. After falling behind by 12-7, the Rams tallied 12 straight points to take a 19-12 lead after back-to-back three-pointers by Sam Baker.
After a score by the Mustangs, Kevon Godwin followed up with another three as ASU took its largest lead of the night at 22-14 midway through the first half.
Midwestern State climbed back into the lead in the closing moments of the opening period, using an 11-4 run to close the gap before hitting two threes to go up before a layup from Burone Edwards evened the game 43-43 heading into the break.
Both the Rams and Mustangs shot 47 percent from the field while MSU won the advantage at the free throw line, shooting 22-of-24 compared to 10-of-13 for the Rams. The Mustangs also won the battle down low, outrebounding Angelo State 38-27.
In the second half, Devaughn Thomas hit back-to-back layups for the Rams before a three-pointer by Paul Williams gave ASU the lead at 52-51.
Thomas led the Rams offensively with 20 points on the night, adding four rebounds while Baker collected 15 points with four rebounds and two steals. Also contributing was Edwards who tallied 14 points and a team-high five rebounds.
With just over 11 minutes to go in the game, Midwestern State jumped to its largest lead in the game with a 12-4 run to go up by nine points, 72-63.
The Rams kept up the fight, closing the gap once again as Thomas hit a three followed by two free throws and another deep ball by Sam Moore to make it a one-point game.
MSU's defense locked in after that, holding the Rams scoreless in the final two minutes of play before sinking five free throws down the stretch to close out the game.
The Rams will return home in a quick turnaround as Angelo State hosts Texas A&M – Commerce on Tuesday afternoon at the Junell Center. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m.
