GEORGETOWN, Texas – A pair of late turnovers proved costly for the Southwestern University Pirates men's basketball team in a 72-66 loss to the University of Dallas Crusaders.

Kyle Howard led all scorers with 23 points on 9-for-14 shooting, getting to the rim at will and working as a defensive pest with two steals and two blocks. Brandon Alexander followed with a workmanlike 17 points and seven rebounds, shooting 7-for-14 with four offensive rebounds.

It wasn't enough as the Pirates shot just 24-for-68 as a team (35.3 percent), including an ice-cold 1-for-16 from deep.

Dallas had a balanced scoring effort with three of its five starters finishing in double figures. Dustin Mathis led the Crusaders with 21 points, shooting 7-for-12 from the field and hitting half of his eight 3-point attempts. Jai Love poured in 18 on 14 shots with five assists, hurting the Pirates with his dribble penetration. Michael Wambsganss added 14 on 16 shots.

The Crusaders shot 27-for-65 as a team (41.5 percent), including 8-for-14 from deep and 10-for-16 from the free-throw line.

In a back and forth game, the Pirates committed back-to-back turnovers, leading to a three-point play for Wambsganss and 3-pointer for Matthis, turning a 52-51 Pirate lead into a 54-52 deficit with 5:12 remaining. 

Alexander tied the game at 54-54 with 4:57 remaining but the Pirates were outscored 18-12 the rest of the way, committing two more turnovers the rest of the way. 

With the loss, the Pirates drop to 8-8 on the season and 4-5 in conference play. Southwestern will travel next week to face Schreiner on Friday, Jan. 24 and Trinity University on Saturday, Jan. 25.