The Mustangs’ huge second half led to a 70-56 victory over the Texas A&M International Dustdevils at D.L. Ligon Coliseum Saturday afternoon.
On Military Appreciation Day, MSU had personnel from Sheppard Air Force Base in attendance as the Mustangs looked for a victory to keep their conference postseason hopes alive in their home finale.
It was a physical battle throughout most of the first half before the Dustdevils pulled away on a 12-4 run to end the first half with a 39-29 lead. The Dustdevils shot over 50 percent from the field and 50 percent from three. However, the second half would become a whole different story for the Dustdevils.
The Dustdevils saw their 10 point lead quickly evaporate as the Mustangs went on a 13-1 run to take a 42-40 lead early in the second half. The Mustangs defense contained the Dustdevil offense, holding the team to just seven points through the halfway point of the second period.
The Mustangs second-half barrage continued as a putback dunk from junior forward Reggie Hill sent D.L Ligon to an uproar and led to a big 13-2 run that saw MSU’s lead grow to 62-48 with 4:35 left in the game. D.L. Ligon turned into a playoff atmosphere as the Mustangs finished the second half strong, including a couple of dunks from business finance junior Will Shepard to put the exclamation point for the Mustangs on Military Appreciation Day.
The Mustangs defense showed up in a big way in the second half, holding the Dustdevils to only 17 points on 7-28 shooting and 0-11 from three. In addition, the Mustangs forced seven turnovers and sent the Dustdevils to the free throw line only twice
The Mustangs scored 41 points in the second half with 50% shooting accuracy and finished the game with a perfect 14-14 from the free throw line.
Will Shepard’s game high 18 points and business sophomore Mason Gibson’s 17 led the way for the Mustangs, followed by sophomore Amaechi Chukwu and junior Bakari LeStrap scoring 10 points each. Accounting senior Pierre Sanders had a game high seven assists with a block and a steal.
Guard John Achebe led the Dustdevils in scoring, as he was their only player in double figures with 12 points.
With their victory against Texas A&M International, the Mustangs went undefeated at home in February.
