Box Score Despite a career-high 21 points from sophomore forward John Hatch, Colorado College could not overcome a slow start and dropped an 80-66 decision to Texas Lutheran University on Friday night at Reid Arena.

The Bulldogs solidified their position atop the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference standings and now hold a game and a half lead over CC.

After Hatch gave the Tigers a 5-0 lead, CC went scoreless on its next 10 possessions, committing five turnovers and missing five shots.

At the same time, Texas Lutheran scored 17 points on seven consecutive possessions and built a 12-point cushion on a jumper by senior guard Kendall Holmes just 6:08 into the contest.

TLU took its largest lead of the game at 58-40 when junior forward Aris Qadash Williams scored on a layup midway through the second half.

Colorado College used a 9-2 surge to trim its deficit to 11 points on a bucket by Hatch off a spin move in the lane, but that proved to be as close as the Tigers would get.

CC was within 11 after sophomore guard Eric Houska connected on the last of his four three-pointers, but the Bulldogs made six of eight free throws during the final two minutes to seal the victory.

Junior guard Sterling Holmes, who failed to score during last Friday's encounter with Colorado College, led Texas Lutheran with 20 points.

TLU took a 30-15 lead, its largest of the first half when Sterling Holmes completed a three-point play with 6:05 remaining in the first half.

The Tigers clawed their way back to within seven points early in the second half on a three-pointer by Houska from the left corner, but the Bulldogs answered with a 10-2 run to build a 52-37 advantage.

Houska finished with 19 points for CC, which slipped to 12-8 overall and 7-2 in the Southern Collegiate Athletic conference.

Senior guard Justin Berardino scored eight points and dished out six assists.

Texas Lutheran won the battle on the boards by a 33-23 margin thanks in part to sophomore forward Matthew Gillette, who grabbed a game-high eight rebounds.

Junior guard Jordan Kouremetis added 16 points for the Bulldogs, who improved to 16-3 overall and 8-0 in league play.

Colorado College plays host to Southwestern University Sunday at noon.