Bulldogs Make Pirates Walk Plank in 75-63 SCAC Victory

SEGUIN, Texas -- Texas Lutheran men's basketball got back in the win column with a 75-63 win over Southwestern Thursday night in Memorial Gymnasium to open conference play.

The Bulldogs (3-7, 1-0 SCAC) forced the Pirates into 23 turnovers and turned those into 20 points to help facilitate its double-digit victory. Jonah Johnson (Cibolo/Steele) helped spark the Bulldogs with a career and team-high 14 points off the bench, including 4-of-9 from three-point range. Teddy Tapken (Austin/Lake Travis) finished with 11 points on an efficient 5-of-6 shooting and added four rebounds and two assists. Xavier Phillips (Austin/Dripping Springs), who made his return to the starting lineup after missing most of non-conference play due to injury, led the Bulldogs with five rebounds and added nine points and four assists. Isaac Orozco (Helotes/O'Connor) finished with a team-high six assists to go along with seven points and three steals. Semaj Edwards (Lanham, MD/Oak Hill) was the final Bulldog in double figures with ten points and three steals. Kevin Juarez (Pasadena/Pasadena) matched his career-high with nine points off the bench on 4-of-5 shooting.

Texas Lutheran would lead wire-to-wire Thursday night, leading the Pirates by as many as 18 points in the second half. The Bulldogs quickly gained a 5-0 lead in the first minute of play and never looked back. The Bulldogs built a nine-point lead in the opening period and led by four at the halftime break.

Southwestern came as close as two points early in the second half, 36-34, but the Bulldogs engineered a 10-1 run over a three minute stretch in the second half to push the game out of reach. TLU's largest lead of the game came with eight minutes left in the game.

Texas Lutheran made things difficult for Southwestern who only had 11 assists on the night. The Pirates finished 54 percent from the floor, but just 26.3 percent from three-point range.

Texas Lutheran will be back in action Saturday, Jan. 4, as they travel to Georgetown for a rematch with Southwestern. Tip-off is set for 6 PM. All streaming and live stats links will be available on tlubulldogs.com.