TLU Falls to Trinity in 78-76 Heartbreaker

SEGUIN, TX -- Jamir Mason (Pearland/St. Thomas Episcopal) finished with 16 points and 13 rebounds, his second double-double of the season, but it wasn't enough as Texas Lutheran took a 78-76 loss at home to rival Trinity on Saturday night.

Mason was also 2-2 from the three-point line. Sebastian Andrade (El Paso/Americas) led all Bulldogs scorers with 19 points and dished a team-high five assists.

The Tigers (16-3, 8-2 SCAC) handed the Bulldogs (5-11, 3-5 SCAC) their fourth straight loss. Despite another setback, the Bulldogs remain ahead of University of Dallas for the all-important sixth seed in the SCAC.

Texas Lutheran started the game on an 8-3 run - jumping out in front of the first place Tigers. The Bulldogs maintained control throughout the duration of the first half. TLU entered the locker room with a 43-34 halftime lead.

The Bulldogs retained the lead well into the second half - staying the course despite hot shooting from the Tigers to start the half. A two-minute Bulldogs scoring drought allowed the Tigers to claw back into the game tying the game at 59 with 9:39 remaining. The Bulldogs would regain the lead, but the Tigers would stay within striking distance before finally overtaking the Bulldogs, 72-70, with 1:44 remaining. The teams would exchange leads down the stretch. Sebastian Andrade would sink a clutch three-pointer to give Texas Lutheran a 76-75 lead with 13 seconds remaining but the Tigers would respond with a fastbreak layup to regain the lead with four seconds remaining. The Bulldogs would have the final possession with an opportunity to win it but a deep three-pointer from Riley Fornerette (Surprise, Ariz./Dysart) would come up short.

Trinity would outrebound the Bulldogs 46-37 and lead the Bulldogs in points in the paint and fastbreak points.

The Bulldogs begin a road trip that will see them play five games in 11 nights on Tuesday, February 1st, as they head to Sherman, Texas, to face Austin College in a make-up contest for the previously canceled January 15th contest. Tip-off is currently set for 6 PM. All streaming and stat links can be found on tlubulldogs.com.