GEORGETOWN, Texas — A dominant first half propelled the Southwestern men's basketball team to a 79-73 victory over the Austin College Kangaroos, snapping a four-game losing streak to close the regular season.

With the week's cold front dissipating, Southwestern's jumpers started warming up. In the first half, the Pirates shot 50 percent (15-for-30) from the field, including a scorching hot 10-for-17 (58.8 percent) from behind the 3-point line. 

Southwestern moved the ball with purpose, assisting on 10 of its 15 made field goals in the half to take a 45-25 lead at the break. The Pirates found a spark off the bench in freshman guard Nick Crump, who led Southwestern's first-half scoring with nine points on 3-for-3 shooting. Chris Smith, Jr., added eight points on a pair of 3-pointers and two free throws. 

Austin College opened the second half on a 25-9 run, ramping up their defense to record seven steals in the second half while limiting Southwestern to 11-for-30 shooting. The Kangaroos cut the deficit to within four at 54-50 with 11:10 remaining on a Tristan Dick steal leading to a Jaylyn Cleamons fastbreak layup. 

Kyle Poerschke answered with a momentum-halting 3-pointer, and Josh Jones answered a pair of Jake Patin free throws with five unanswered points to give Southwestern some breathing room. 

The Kangaroos made another run, pulling to within six at 75-69 on a Patin layup with 2:39 remaining, but Jones found Brock Luechtefeld for a layup, and Poerschke stole the ball from Jackson Rennie for the quick layup to put Southwestern back up by 10. 

Jones led Southwestern with 19 points, six rebounds, ad four assists, shooting 5-for-9 from the field, including 4-of-6 from behind the 3-point line. Poerschke scored 10 of his 13 points in the second half, and Smith, Jr. finished with 10 points, five rebounds, and two steals. 

Southwestern finishes the regular season with a 9-16 record, including 6-10 in conference play. However, the Pirates are still in contention for the SCAC Tournament and will get the last seed if Trinity defeats the University of Dallas tomorrow.