The loss drops ETBU to 3-7 on the season and 3-5 in conference play. UMHB improves to 8-4 and 6-3.
The win was the 500th career coaching win for UMHB head coach Ken DeWeese, who won his 96th as head coach of the Crusaders.
ETBU kept the game close until midway through the second half, when the Crusader defense went into lockdown mode and allowed UMHB to pull away over the final eight minutes. UMHB held the Tigers to only 35 percent shooting (20-of-57) from the field and kept the Tigers’ high scoring duo of Cedric Isom and Chris Isom in check.
Cedric Isom, the league’s leading scorer entering the game, finished with a team-high 15 points and 12 rebounds, with five assists. Chris Isom, averaging over 20 points per game himself entering the game, was held to 13 points with eight boards.
Charles Chevalier had his second straight encouraging outing for ETBU, however. The 6-8 post finished with 12 points and four rebounds, giving him two straight games in double figures.
No other Tiger scored more than Seth Jones’ three points, and those came late in the game on one of ETBU’s four 3-pointers in 17 attempts.
The Tigers were also miserable from the free-throw line, hitting only 7-of-17 shots (41 percent) compared to a 16-of-25 (64 percent) performance by Mary Hardin-Baylor.
UMHB was led by Brandon Gatlin’s 21 points and got 15 points and 11 boards from Michael Blaylock.