BELTON, Texas -- LeTourneau men's basketball dropped a close one on the road to Mary Hardin-Baylor, falling 88-85 inside Mayborn Campus Center on Monday night.

The YellowJackets (7-4) had multiple attempts to tie the game up on the final possession, but wasn't able to get a shot to fall.

Jackson Mayes led the way for an efficient day for the YellowJackets with 23 points on 7-of-12 from the floor, while LeTourneau as a team shot 31-of-66 (47%) from the field along with a netting a season-best 15 3-pointers.

Branson Lynn followed closely with a career-best 22 points, while Teigan Edwards was a driving force behind the YellowJacket's efficiency. Edwards 18 points on 7-of-10 shooting and 4-of-5 from downtown.

Logan Brinkoeter continued his double-double streak, extending the mark to four straight games. The back-to-back SCAC defensive player of the week notched 15 points and 11 boards, all while dishing out five assists.

UMHB's (10-5) paint presence propelled them to victory in the contest, out-rebounding LeTourneau 47-29, while scoring 26 second chance points while holding LeTourneau to none.

Down 51-43 at the half, the YellowJackets did just enough to keep it a single-digit contest the majority of the second half, before slowly chipping away through the final 2:19. 

A Mayes 3-pointer cut the lead to one with 30 seconds remaining. After the Crusaders converted both free throws following a take foul, LeTourneau worked the offensive glass and provided themselves a trio of 3-point attempts on the final possession. Unfortunately, all three rimmed out, closing the door on the late comeback.

UMHB was led by Hudson Johnson with 28 points, along with Zach Engels with 19 points and 14 rebounds.

UP NEXT

With the non-conference slate complete, LeTourneau returns to SCAC action on Friday, traveling to Kerrville, Texas to take on Schreiner (5:30 p.m.).

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