LAREDO, Texas – Texas A&M International men's basketball was unable to hold off Oklahoma Christian in its return home, falling 61-55 to the Eagles.
 
It was all Dustdevils (9-6, 2-5 LSC) over the first 7:13 of the contest, leading 10-2, behind two separate 5-0 runs.
 
By the 4:41 remaining mark of the first half, Oklahoma Christian (7-7, 3-5 LSC) held a 21-18 lead, but TAMIU would bust out a 10-0 run over the next 2:20 to lead 28-21, and hold an eventual 32-25 lead at the half.
 
Out of halftime, the Eagles would chip away, cutting the deficit to just one on multiple occasions, but the Dustdevils would continue to lead, while growing the edge back to 46-37 with an 8-0 run and 13:02 remaining.
 
TAMIU still led 50-45 with 8:08 remaining, but down that stretch, the Dustdevils would be held to just five points, being outscored 16-5, as the Eagles would finish the comeback.
 
For the game, TAMIU finished the night going 22-for-59 (37.3%) from the floor, but were just 2-for-18 from three. From the foul line, the Dustdevils could only make 9 of their 17 attempts.
 
On the other side, Oklahoma Christian finished 23-for-44 (52.3%) from the field, and 5-for-12 (41.7%) from deep, while going 10-for-14 from the foul line.
 
TAMIU was led offensively by graduate student Greg Bowie II who scored 20 points.
 
Junior John Achebe followed with an all-around stat line of seven points, five rebounds and five assists, while sophomore Olaverr Camacho scored six points with a team best six rebounds.
 
The Dustdevils return to the floor on Saturday, Jan. 7 for a 3 p.m. tip against UAFS.