ALPINE, Texas – Never giving up the lead the entire game, the East Texas Baptist University men's basketball team held onto a first-round win in the American Southwest Conference championship tournament over Concordia University – Texas, 80-76. ETBU is now 20-6 on the year and is now the third 20-win season in the last six years for ETBU.
 
Christopher Haynes led ETBU with 21 points and eight rebounds shooting 77% from the floor. Westin Riddick added 15 points making five three-pointers while Robby Dooley added 14 points and Landin Brown 11 points. Philip Meikle had 24 points for CTX.
 
Overall, ETBU shot 47% to CTX's 43% and made 40% from three-point range and 73% from the line. CTX shot 33% from the arc and 60% from the stripe. ETBU also out rebounded, CTX, 42-33.

Jumping to a 5-0 lead to start the game on a jumper from Dooley and a three-pointer from Riddick, ETBU never lost the lead in the first half. CTX tied the game three different times in two minute time span (17:09-15:28) only to see ETBU go on a13-0 run for a 22-9 lead. That run was over four minutes (15:28-11:29) with scoring from Fontenot, Jayden Williams, Jaden Conner, and Brown. ETBU kept their lead at double digits until under the nine minute mark when CTX started to make a run. The Tornadoes cut the lead to six, three times, before pulling within five at the half, 51-46. ETBU's leads came on making 60% from the three-point line and 55.2% from the floor.
 
ETBU pushed their lead back to 10 points, 56-46, to start the second half on Riddick's fourth three-pointer of the game. Up 10, 58-48, after a Fontenot jumper, CTX went on a 8-0 run over two minutes to come within two, 58-56, with 15:35 left to play. ETBU did move the lead back to five points on another Riddick three-pointer, 61-56, at the 15:18 mark. CTX came within two, 62-60, with 12:08 left to play and that is as close as they would come to trying to get the lead. ETBU followed with a 7-0 run, 69-60, as Dooley had all nine points for the nine-point lead. By the 3:41 mark, CTX was within five, again, 75-70, but Haynes converted an and-1 play to make it an eight-point lead, 78-70. Just as ETBU started to pull away, CTX went on a 6-0 run to come within two, 78-76, with 15 seconds left in the game. CTX had a chance to tie it up but turned the ball over with three seconds left. Brown was fouled and made two free throws to make the final, 80-76.
 
ETBU will now play on Friday at 5:00 p.m. in the semi-final game against the winner of the Texas Dallas/Hardin-Simmons game.