SAN ANTONIO, Texas - For the second-straight season, a trip to the Heartland Conference men's basketball tournament ended in first-round disappointment as Newman dropped a 91-74 decision to second-seeded Texas A&M International Friday evening inside Bill Greehey Arena in San Antonio, Texas. William Burdette led the Jets with 14 points in the loss.

Newman (15-12) led from the start in Friday's semi-final contest. Texas A&M International (18-9) jumped to an early 8-0 lead as the Dustdevils held the Jets scoreless for nearly the first five minutes of the game. TAMIU stretched that lead to as many as 11 after a pair of James Silvie free throws gave the Dustdevils a 13-2 lead at the 13:49 mark. After getting a piece of head coach Mark Potter's mind after a time-out, Kyle Grant drained a lay-up that sparked a 12-2 run over the next three minutes, capped by a William Burdette lay-up that brought Newman to within one, 15-14, with 10:08 to play. After exchanging baskets for the next two possessions, TAMIU reeled off 10-straight points over the next five minutes to turn a tight game into a 27-16 contest. The Dustdevils earned their largest lead of the half with less than 90 seconds to play in the period, and held a 37-22 advantage at halftime.

The Jets never let their deficit grow in the second half, but they couldn't find a way to reduce it either. Twelve points was the closest that Newman could ever get, but TAMIU always had an answer. Likewise, every time the Dustdevils tried to put a run together, Newman sniffed it out. In the end, the Dustdevils simply were too much for Newman as the Dustdevils sent the Jets back to Wichita with a 91-74 loss.

William Burdette led the Jets with 14 points, while Eric Saunders added 13 points and a team-high eight rebounds. Keaton Schultz and Kyle Grant each added 12 points to round out Newman's double-digit scorers. As a team, Newman shot 37.1 percent (23-62) from the field, and 26.1 percent (6-23) from three-point range. The Jets were out-rebounded 49-26 in the contest.

Ryan McLucas led the Dustdevils with a game-high 17 points.

The loss ends Newman's season at 15-11. The Jets will bid farewell to seven seniors as they prepare for the 2011-12 season.