Cold start costly in Hounds' loss to Aggies

LAWTON, Okla. — Five field goals in a half is not exactly a recipe to success.

Eastern New Mexico University’s men tried valiantly to overcome that unsightly first-half stat on Saturday, closing a 17-point deficit to two late in the game before Cameron pulled away to a 64-55 win in a Lone Star Conference crossover matchup.

Junior guard Jacquez Williams hit 5-of-11 from 3-point range and finished with 17 points as the Aggies (7-1) overcame a poor shooting performance of their own.

ENMU (4-4) warmed up to 48 percent (13-of-27) in the second half, but its deficit was simply too much to overcome as the Hounds dropped their third crossover game in a row.

Guards Dernodo Eiland and Milton Garner added 13 points each off the bench for the Aggies, who shot just 34 percent for the game.

Junior Tyler Jefferson had a strong game for the Hounds with 22 points on 8-of-13 shooting and a game-high nine rebounds, but no one else reached double figures.

The Hounds led 2-0 and 4-2, but Williams’ first 3-pointer with 14:48 left in the half gave the Aggies the lead. A layup by Greg Morgan about a minute later broke the game’s final tie and put Cameron in front for good at 8-6.

Dannon Wafer’s basket kept the Hounds within 13-11 at the 11:09 mark, but the Aggies then took off with a 14-0 run that included back-to-back 3-pointers by Williams for a 27-11 lead. Eiland’s 3-pointer at the 6:11 mark made it 30-13.

The Hounds didn’t get the lead into single figures until guard Tralyn Harden’s 3-pointer cut the margin to 42-33 with nine minutes left. ENMU steadily chipped away, closing to 53-51 with four minutes left after consecutive layups by Wafer and Jefferson.

After a media timeout, Garner scored inside to start a 7-0 Aggies run that was capped by Kallan Glasgow’s dunk with 1:34 left. The Aggies outscored ENMU 11-4 down the stretch, collecting only two field goals in that time but converting 7-of-9 from the free throw line.

Garner finished with a double-double, grabbing a game-high 12 rebounds.

ENMU returns to action on Monday with a crossover game against Southwestern Oklahoma at Weatherford, Okla.