ABILENE, Texas – The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor men's basketball team cruised to a 97-79 road win over McMurry University Thursday evening in Abilene. The Cru improved to 20-4 overall and 15-2 in American Southwest Conference play while the War Hawks fell to 6-18 on the season and 5-12 in league action.

UMHB was first on the board with a Ty Prince three-pointer. The Cru continued on a 12-4 run, led by Gibson Hearne with four points. The War Hawks responded with 18 quick points to knot-up the contest 24-24 at the 9:12 mark. Back-to-back baskets by Nathan Stolz sparked an 8-2 run by the Cru to bring the advantage back to nine. Andrew Schultz added seven unanswered points for UMHB before Josiah Johnson sunk a three-pointer to close the half ahead 52-38.
 
The second half saw baskets behind both arcs before the Cru used six unanswered points to bring their lead to 18. The contest remained in even action until UMHB went on a six-point run, creating an advantage of 20 at the 7:57 mark. The War Hawks responded with five unanswered points to cut the gap to 15. The Cru continued pushing, outscoring the War Hawks 14-11 in the final six minutes of action to cruise to the 97-79 victory.
 
Stolz led UMHB with 18 points, shooting 73 percent from the field. He was followed by Josiah Johnson with 16 points while Schultz (13), Prince (12) and Luke Feely (10) also recorded double-digit performances. The Cru outshot the War Hawks 54-47 percent from field goal range, including 46 points in the paint. Prince led UMHB with seven rebounds, six assists and two blocks on the night.
 
UMHB closes out the regular season in a 3 p.m. game at Hardin-Simmons University on Saturday, February 18th. The Cru will advance to American Southwest Conference tournament play next week. Visit cruathletics.com for more information about the postseason.