Tarleton tops Hounds 70-52
Pinckney nets 16 in losing effort

Box Score

STEPHENVILLE, TEXAS — Tarleton State University used a runs of 14-0 and 27-7 midway through the second half to defeat Eastern New Mexico University, 70-52, in a Lone Star Conference crossover game on Saturday, Dec. 11. The loss, which dropped the Greyhounds to 3-5 on the season, was Tarleton’s 14th straight victory over ENMU. The Texans moved to 5-1 on the year.

Irshaun Pinckney (Sr., G, Clovis, NM/Clovis HS) led the Hounds with 16 points on 5-of-7 shooting, and also led the team with four assists. Jason Breland (Jr., G, Los Angeles, CA/Mount San Antonio College) finished in double figures for the second straight contest with 11 points (5-for-10 from the field) and made four rebounds. Breland posted 11 points in Wednesday’s 72-61 win over Oklahoma Panhandle State University.

Jamaal Hunnicutt (Sr., F, Amarillo, TX/Hill Junior College) posted a season-low two points on just 1-for-3 shooting, but led the Hounds with six boards in the game. ENMU was topped on the boards 37-26, including a 19-7 TSU edge in offensive rebounds.

Each team was slow out of the gates, with ENMU shooting just 9-of-24 (37.5%) and TSU landing 9-of-29 (31.0%) in the first half. But Tarleton held a 21-20 edge at the break by virtue of 12 Eastern turnovers and by posting eight offensive rebounds.

The second half began as a back-and-forth contest, with five tie scores and three lead changes in the first 6:17 of action. Two Pinckney free throws at 12:40 brought the contest to 37-36 in favor of Tarleton, when TSU scored the game’s next 14 points and went on the 27-7 run over the next 9:40 to see its lead balloon to 21 points at 64-43. Ironically, a pair of Pinckney free throws ended Tarleton’s run at the 2:54 mark.

The Texans were led by Rich Francis’ 19 points in 19 minutes, as he shot 7-for-8 from the floor, including 5-for-6 from three-point land. David Stephens posted a double-double with 13 points and 14 boards, while LaShon Sheffield scored 11 points despite going 3-of-11 from the field. Randall Williams made four blocks in the victory.

The Hounds are back in action next weekend when they head to Las Vegas, Nev. for the Las Vegas Invitational. ENMU will face Pittsburg State University on Saturday, Dec. 18 at 3:15 p.m. MST and St. Mary’s University (TX) on Sunday, Dec. 19 at 3:15 p.m.