EVANSVILLE, IND. – Tarleton State's historic season came to an end Thursday night with a 72-68 loss to No. 25 Indiana (Pa.) in the NCAA Division II Final Four.
 
The Texans have forever etched the 2014-15 season into the record books by matching the longest run in school history with the second Final Four appearance in school history while also setting a new school record for wins in a season with 31.
 
EJ Reed got the scoring started for Tarleton State with a 3-ball just 28 seconds into the game, but the Hawks quickly answered with a 12-3 run to lead by six just 3:45 into the ballgame. Reed got the Texans rolling again as he broke the run with a dunk off a pass from Michael Hardge that started a 12-0 Tarleton surge over the next six minutes to lead 18-12 with 9:54 left in the opening half.
 
After Indiana (Pa.) retook the lead and carried it down to the final two minutes, Mo Lee drilled a jumper with 1:46 left in the opening half to bring the game to its third tie at 27-27. IUP hit a pair of free throws right before halftime to take a 29-27 advantage into the break.
 
Davene Carter got the Texans rolling to open the second half and Tarleton State outscored the Hawks 22-10 over the opening 10 minutes to build a 49-39 lead entering the final 10 minutes of the game.
 
The Texan scoring came to a halt, however, after a Carter layup pushed the lead to 10 for the third time. Tarleton was held scoreless over the next five minutes while IUP scored 12 consecutive points to take a 51-49 lead with 5:30 left in the game. Damion Clemons finally got the Texans back on the board with a layup to bring the game to its seventh tie at 51-51.
 
IUP went on a 16-6 run over the next four minutes to take a 10-point lead into the final minute before a 3-ball from Clemons, two triples from Hardge and a layup from Hardge in the final 48 seconds pulled the Texans close in the waning seconds, but not all the way back.
 
Hardge, who scored eight points in the final 48 seconds of the game, led the way with 17 total points to go along with two rebounds, four assists and two steals. In addition to Hardge, the Texans had three more double-figure scorers including a career-high, 16-point performance from Clemons off the bench in his final game as a Texan.
 
Reed scored 13 points while Lee chipped in 12 in his final game in the Purple and White. Carter (6) and Malcolm Hamilton (4) rounded out the Tarleton scoring.
 
Tarleton State shot 55 percent from the floor on 27-49 shooting from the floor while IUP was 18-38 from the floor for 47 percent shooting. The Texans were 75 percent from the free throw line but on 6-8 shooting while the Hawks were 28-34 at the free throw line.
 
The Hawks also scored 23 points on 15 Tarleton turnovers while the Texans managed 11 points on 13 Hawk turnovers. Tarleton did lead the assist effort with 15 and had four blocked shots compared to IUP's one.
 
For the Texans, this marks the final game in the careers of Lee, Carter, Clemons and Mercedes Lane, who participated in Senior Day despite being a redshirt junior. Over the last four years, the trio of Carter, Clemons and Lane have seen the Texans win 106 total game – including 59 during the two-year tenure of Lee.