MARSHALL, Texas – The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor men's basketball team fell victim to a late offensive rally from East Texas Baptist University Thursday in Marshall, falling 67-60 to the Tigers. The Cru fell to 9-8 on the season and 5-5 in American Southwest Conference action while the Tigers moved to 10-9 overall and 6-5 in league play.
 
The first half of action opened with four lead changes before UMHB used a 10-0 run to gain a double-digit margin on the Tigers. Josiah Johnson hit a pair of foul shots to jump start the run before Zach Engels hit a layup to put the Cru ahead by three. Johnson followed that with a three-pointer before Eli Beard hit another layup for a 19-11 lead. Johnson capped the run with a jumper at 10:19 to put UMHB up 21-11 in the frame.
 
East Texas Baptist responded with back-to-back field goals to cut the gap to six. Payton Brooks hit a solo free throw at 8:08 before Jayden Williams hit a jumper and a three-pointer for the Tigers to cut the gap to two. A pair of free throws from Kurt Labeaud gave ETBU the lead with 5:44 to play in the period. Ryan Pondant responded with a layup for UMHB, followed by shots from Connor Zamiara and Eli Beard.
 
The Tigers again cut the gap to one possession as the duration of the frame played within five points. Josiah Johnson led the Cru with 11 points and nine rebounds in the first half. UMHB shot 54.2 percent in the first period, making 13 field goals off five assists.
 
Eli Beard opened the second half with a three-pointer to put the Cru up by four points before the Tigers tied it on back-to-back field goals. ETBU pulled away with a 10-2 run, taking an eight-point lead at the 13:10 mark of the second half. The Cru cut the gap to five but the Tigers continued to hold a two-possession lead until a trio of free throws from Eli Beard pulled the Cru within two. ETBU held on to the one-possession lead until the 1:51 mark when Josiah Johnson evened the game with a three-pointer to put the score at 58-58. Kurt Labeaud gave the Tigers another lead with a three-pointer at 1:17 but Eli Beard again cut the gap with a pair of free throws at 1:01.
 
Jaden Conner extended the Tiger lead with a three-pointer at 00:38 which proved to be the game-winner for ETBU. The Tigers held the Cru scoreless through the final 1:01 of action, earning the 67-60 win.  
 
Josiah Johnson led UMHB with 22 points while Eli Beard added 19. Johnson also had a double-double, adding 12 rebounds while he also led the team with two assists and two steals. UMHB shot 45.5 percent in the contest, going 27.3 percent from beyond the arc. The Cru had 32 points in the paint with 11 bench points and eight second-chance points. The contest saw six tied scores with nine lead changes.
 
UMHB returns to action on Saturday, January 27^th in a 3 p.m. contest at LeTourneau University in Longview.