RIVERSIDE, Calif. — Tarleton State Men's Basketball fell in the final minutes, 56-55, on Thursday night out west at California Baptist at the Dale E. and Sarah Ann Fowler Events Center.
The Texans (11-12 overall, 2-8 WAC) remain winless in Riverside against the Lancers (17-6, 7-3). With the win, CBU evens the season series at 1-1 after dropping to the Texans, 91-85, on Jan. 3 in Stephenville. The Lancers extended their winning streak to seven and have won their last 14 games at home.
Andy Sigiscar became the ninth different Texan to lead the team in scoring, leading the Texans for the first time this season tying his career-high with 18. Sigiscar made nine of his 11 shots from the floor in 32 minutes of action. He posted a team-high two assists and notched three blocks.
Cam McDowell and
DJ Dormu also scored in double figures. McDowell ended the night with 14 shooting six-for-14 from the floor. Dormu scored in double figures for the second time this season with 12.
Jordan Mizell led the Texans with six boards.
Tarleton State started strong early on forcing CBU to miss its first nine shots from the floor. The Lancers didn't see one go down from the field until seven minutes into the contest. The Texans struck first off a dunk from Sigiscar. Later on, McDowell kept the momentum moving with an and-1 layup to put the Purple and White ahead, 5-2. CBU made their first shot from the floor with 13 minutes left in the first half to cut their deficit to two, 8-6.
The Lancers grabbed their first lead of the game with 10:34 to play off a triple. The Texans quickly answered to regain the lead thanks to a layup from Sigiscar. After the teams traded buckets for a few minutes, back-to-back buckets from Mizell and McDowell gave the Texans their largest lead of the half, 22-17 with six minutes left.
Over the next two minutes, CBU burst off on a 7-0 run to take the lead back, 24-22. Sigiscar broke the Texan scoring drought that lasted over three minutes to tie the game at 24. Dormu tied the game at 26, followed by Sigiscar tying the game at 28 in the final minutes of the half. On the Texans last possession of the first half, Dormu drove the length of the corner a dropped in a corner jump at the buzzer to send the Texans into the break, leading 30-28.
CBU scored on their first possession of the half to regain the lead once again. After the Texans retook the lead, 34-33, the Purple and White ran off eight-straight to take their largest lead of the game, nine, 42-33, with 15:16 remaining. Sigiscar contributed four during the run while McDowell and Mizell added a pair apiece.
With the Texans leading by nine once again, 44-35, the Lancers broke off a 14-0 run that changed the game. CBU made seven of their 11 shots from the floor during the run and held the Texans scoreless for over six minutes. During the Lancer burst, the Purple and White missed eight shots and turned the ball over three times. After the run, the Lancers held a five-point advantage, 49-44 with just over six and a half minutes to play.
In the final five minutes, the Texans were never able to regain the lead. McDowell converted an and-one opportunity to draw the Purple and White within two, but the CBU lead jumped right back to two possessions after a Lancer triple. That basket was CBU's last made bucket in the final 5:01 in the game. With 2:07 to play, Dormu made a pair of freebies to bring the Texan deficit down to two. After CBU went one for two from the line, a mid-range jumper fell for Dormu with 34.6 left on the clock. The Texans elected to let CBU play out their final possession and grabbed a board with just over five ticks to play after a missed triple. Hicks found Dormu who raced up the court and his half-court heave fell just short giving the Lancers a narrow one-point victory, 56-55.
The Texans shot 45.5 percent from the floor making 25 of their 55 attempts. The Purple and White did not make a single shot from deep on their nine shots. Tarleton State won the turnover battle, 16-13 but lost the battle of the glass, 46-27. CBU shot 30.5 percent from the floor making just 18 of their 59 shots. The Lancers shot 20 percent from deep, making four-for-20.
Tarleton State will continue its road trip out west on Saturday evening heading to Southern Utah for its second game of the season in Cedar City. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m. CT from America First Events Center.
