COMMERCE, Texas – Sophomore B.B. Knight scored a game-high 19 points and junior Terry Anderson recorded another double-double (17 points and 11 rebounds) to defeat Texas A&M-Commerce, 70-53, Monday evening at the A&M-Commerce Fieldhouse. Lamar's win secured the No. 4 seed in the Southland Conference tournament next month in Lake Charles, La., and keeps the door open for a shot a shot at the three seed.
 
Knight and Anderson were two of five Cardinals to finish the day in double figures for an offense that shot better than 52 percent from the field (26-of-50) including seven three-pointers. Big Red did a majority of the heavy lifting in the opening half when the converted nearly 65 percent of their attempts.
 
Also finishing night in double figures were Adam Hamilton (13 points/6-of-7 shooting), Chris Pryor with 11 points and Errol White with 10.
 
In addition to their strong night shooting the ball, Lamar also got the best from A&M-Commerce on the glass. Big Red outrebounded the Lions, 34-27.
 
The Lions were 19-of-53 (.310) and cooled off tremendously down the stretch after making an early second half run. Commerce was hurt by the three-pointer in the second half knocking down just 2-of-12 attempts and finished the game 5-of-22 (.227).
 
After a slow start (0-for-4), the Cardinals got hot and broke a 13-13 tie with an 18-2 run. The Cardinals pushed their lead to as many as 18 (40-22) with just over four minutes remaining. The Cardinals converted 13 of their first 19 attempts, including nine consecutive makes. At one point, the Cardinals saw their field goal percentage jump above 70 percent (after hitting 13 of 15 during the run).
 
The run which lasted more than five minutes was so significant that A&M-Commerce was forced to take two timeouts. LU cooled off a bit from their 70-percent clip but still went into the locker room shooting 18-of-28 (.643) with four three-pointers.
 
The Lions were solid from the field in the opening 20 minutes of action but couldn't keep up with Lamar's explosive pace. A&M-Commerce went into the locker room shooting 40 percent from the floor (10-of-25).
 
The Lions didn't quit and came out of half time with a renewed energy. A&M-Commerce opened the half with a three-pointer which sparked a 17-9 run that saw the home team pull within seven points, 51-44, with just over nine minutes remaining. A&M-Commerce's run coincided with a 3-of-9 start for LU.
 
The Red and White didn't panic but responded with two Anderson free throws followed by an Errol White basket. The four consecutive points sparked a 15-1 run for LU that Commerce was unable to recover from.
 
The Cardinals close out the regular season Wednesday when they host Houston Christian. Prior to the game, Lamar will honor lone senior Chris Pryor. The game will tip off at 7 p.m. from Neches Arena. It will be broadcast live on Newstalk 560 KLVI and streamed live on ESPN+.