'Roo Men Fall to St. Thomas

SHERMAN, Texas - The Austin College men's basketball team fell 80-58 to the University of St. Thomas (Tex.) on Saturday in their final game before the New Year. The 'Roos are now 3-6 overall and 0-2 in Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference play.

The 'Roos struggled to get anything going offensively in the game, shooting just 32.2% from the field and committing 20 turnovers while St. Thomas knocked down 14-of-34 three pointers. Austin College led in the early moments of the game but the Celts used a 7-0 run to grab a 12-6 lead and they would not relinquish it for the rest of the game.

Austin College trailed 28-22 with 6:40 left before halftime, but St. Thomas closed the half with a 15-4 run to make it 43-26 at the half and maintained a double-digit lead the rest of the way. After the Celts pushed the lead above 20 in the second half, the 'Roos closed to within 14 twice but that's as close as things would get down the stretch. 

Michael Holland paced Austin College with 15 points and added eight boards, and Devin Roland chipped in nine points on 4-of-8 shooting. The 'Roos held a 46-to-42 rebounding edge in the game, but St. Thomas converted Austin College's 20 turnovers into 32 points while the 'Roos managed just eight points off of turnovers.

Freddie Ricks and Nathan Ghavidel each came off the bench to score 12 for St. Thomas, and Kennard Robinson and Paul Taulton had 10 apiece for the Celts.

Austin College is on the road to open 2020, heading to Colorado Springs on January 3 to take on Colorado College.