LAREDO, Texas – Texas A&M International dropped the Rogers State men 68-55 Monday evening inside the TAMIU Kinesiology and Convocation Building.
 
RSU trailed 28-22 at the half despite shooting just 28 percent from the field and going 0-for-6 from long distance. The Hillcats closed out the opening half of play with a 10-3 run behind five points each from Jeylyn Sharpe and Baron Smith Jr.
 
The Dustdevils slowly established a double-digit lead in the opening eight minutes of play. TAMIU took a 17 point advantage with 4:23 remaining on an 8-0 run seemingly put the Hillcats away. But RSU clawed back and with 1:43 to go, the Hillcats scored six unanswered points to trim the deficit to 59-50.
 
The Dustdevils hit 7-of-12 free throws in the final 94 seconds of play to fend off the Hillcats by outscoring RSU 9-5 to close the game.
 
RSU shot a season low 31 percent from the field as they committed 15 turnovers in the 68-55 loss. Smith Jr. finished with a game high 24 points in the loss for the Hillcats. The junior college transfer shot 57 percent as he set a career high in points.
 
Senior forward Jeylyn Sharpe moved to fifth on the program's career scoring list passing Matt Kellogg as he totaled 14 points. With 869 career points, Sharp sits just 131 points behind fourth place Donald Williams.
 
TAMIU (8-4, 2-0) was led by Denzel Bellot with 16 points while Jordan VanDekop chipped in 14 and Arthur Santanna added 11 points as the Dustdevils shot 45 percent from the field and 6-for-13 from 3-point range.
 
Rogers State (8-4, 1-1) will return to action following Winter Break hosting Oklahoma Panhandle State at 3 p.m. on Saturday, December 31 at the Claremore Expo. Live play-by-play coverage will be provided with audio and video streaming on the Hillcat Network at www.rsuhillcats.com/live.