BEAUMONT, Texas – Junior Davion Buster scored a game-high 21 points to lead Lamar University to a 74-64 victory over Southeastern Louisiana Tuesday evening in a non-conference contest. The game closes out the Cardinals (2-7) non-conference schedule for the 2020-21 season.
 
"I thought we did a good job of sharing the basketball tonight with four guys in double figures," said head coach Tic Price. "We did a good job of holding on to the basketball and finished the night with more assists than turnovers. We also took care of business at the free throw line.
 
"I thought they played very determined basketball. They were playing for their coach who couldn't be here, but I give credit to our guys. They never quit fighting and figured out a way to get the win," added Price.
 
The Cardinals finished the night shooting nearly 42 percent from the field (25-of-60), including an 8-of-20 (.400) effort on three-pointers. LU also took care of business at the free throw line converting 16-of-18 attempts (.889).
 
The Lions won the battle on the boards, 41-36, including 12 offensive rebounds (to LU's seven), but Southeastern only outscored the Cardinals by one in second-chance points.
 
Buster was joined in double figures by 16 points (and 10 rebounds) from senior Avery Sullivan, 12 points from Beaumont freshman Kasen Harrison and 11 from sophomore Anderson Kopp.
 
The Lions were held to a 24-of-61 (.393) effort with just five triples on the night. Two Lions scored in double figures including 18 from Joe Kasperzyk and 17 from Gus Okafor.
 
The first half was a back-n-forth affair that saw neither team gain more than a four-point advantage. LU held the lead for just over eight minutes, while the Lions had the lead for 9:28 of the opening half, but the Cards managed to take a four-point lead into the locker room.
 
After a Southeastern Louisiana triple to open the second half of play Big Red responded with a 7-0 run to build their biggest lead of the game (to that point in the night) – eight points. The Cardinals managed to keep their advantage at three possessions for the rest of the night pushing their lead to as many as 13 points with six minutes remaining in the game.
 
From that point on the Cardinals simply answered each Southeastern score not allowing their guests to get any closer as LU picks up the 10-point victory. The victory for the Cardinals put an end to a three-game slide in just their second home game of the season.
 
The homestand is short lived as the Cardinals will now open Southland Conference play with three of their next four on the road beginning Saturday at Abilene Christian. The game will tip off at 3 p.m. from the Teague Special Events Center (due to renovations taking place in Moody Coliseum).