CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – Lamar University trailed by as many as 11 points in the second half but closed the game on a 24-9 run, sparked by a breakaway dunk from Andrew Holifield to give Lamar a 65-61 victory Thursday evening at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. Lamar's (3-5, 1-0 SLC) victory snapped a four-game win streak for the Islanders who had been playing their best basketball of the season heading into the contest and it was also their first home loss of the season.
 
The Cardinals closed the game knocking down 13-of-25 (.520) attempts, including three triples, to finish the game 26-of-58 (.448) on the night. Big Red took advantage of their opportunities from the free throw line despite getting 14 fewer attempts than the Islanders. LU hit 7-of-9 (.778) from the stripe.
 
Free throws played a huge part in the outcome as the two teams switched roles in the second half. After opening game on fire, A&M-Corpus Christi went into the locker room, cooled off and never recovered. Lamar's defense held its host to an 8-of-27 (.296) effort in the second half as the Islanders never found the range from three-point land (0-for-13). The Islanders had their opportunities at the free throw line attempting 23 shots but hit just 13-of-23 (.565) on the night with seven misses coming in the second half.
 
Alexis Marmolejos led the Cardinals' attack with 17 points on 4-of-6 shooting from long range. Ja'Sean Jackson added 13 points and nine assists and three steals, while Andrew Holified had 12 points and six rebounds.
 
Although Adam Hamilton didn't reach double figures in scoring he did pull down a game-high 11 rebounds as the Cardinals outrebounded their hosts by three, 35-32.
 
Both teams shot the ball well for much of the opening half despite the fact that Lamar was never able to claim an advantage in the opening 20 minutes. The Islanders outshot LU in the first half as the hometown team converted 16-of-29 (.552) while Lamar finished the half at 39 percent. The Cardinals made up the different by holding A&M-Corpus Christi scoreless from long range.
 
Following an Islander free throw with less than a second remaining in the half, the Cardinals went into the locker room down just nine, 42-33. The Cardinals managed to pull with five early in the second half after the two teams flipped roles to start the second. Big Red came out converting four of its first seven, while the Islanders misfired on six of their first eight – a trend that continued throughout the final 20 minutes.
 
After A&M-Corpus Christi built the lead back to double digits, Lamar rattled off a 19-5 run to claim first lead of the game, 57-56, following a Holifield dunk in transition. It was a lead the Cardinals would not surrender for only 13 seconds before reclaiming the advantage and never looking back.
 
The Cardinals will look to open league play 2-0 Saturday when they travel to Edinburg, Texas to face UT Rio Grande Valley. The game against the Vaqueros will tip off at 4:30 p.m. from the UTRGV Fieldhouse.