Men's Hoops Falls to St. Thomas

HOUSTON, Texas - The Austin College men's basketball team struggled to get going offensively and St. Thomas shot better than 50% from the field and knocked down 13 threes, as the Celts handed the 'Roos a 97-57 loss on Friday night. The 'Roos are now 3-2 overall on the year.

St. Thomas shot 65.6% from the field in the opening half, hitting 21-of-32 shots to pour in 56 points before the break as they took a 56-29 advantage into halftime. The Celts were 8-of-16 from beyond the arc in the game's first 20 minutes and owned a 25-to-12 edge on the backboards. The game started out tight through the first four minutes, with a bucket by Kam Hogan keeping the 'Roos within one at 10-9 at the 15:58 mark of the opening half, but a 20-to-4 run blew the game open and made it 30-13 with 10:08 on the clock.

The lead grew to 38-17 two minutes later, as St. Thomas put three players in double-digits in the scoring column before halftime. The 'Roos, meanwhile, hit just 13-of-39 attempts from the field, including 3-of-9 from long range with Tristan Dick and Jason Jones each scoring six points to pace Austin College in the opening frame. Austin College once again shot just 33.3% from the field in the second half and went 0-of-3 from deep, finding themselves outscored 41-28 in the final 20 minutes of the game. 

St. Thomas had a 42-to-21 advantage in bench points, and a 26-to-6 edge in fast break points in the game while holding a 51-to-35 edge on the glass. Dick led Austin College with 11 points, seven rebounds, and three assists while Jake Patin was the only other 'Roo to reach double figures with 10 points in the loss. Jones chipped in eight points and six boards.

Austin College and St. Thomas will square off again on Saturday with game time set for 4:00 p.m.