SAN ANTONIO, Texas – The Newman men's basketball team fell, 78-65, at St. Mary's on Saturday (Jan. 3) at Bill Greehey Arena. The Jets dropped to 5-5 overall and 1-3 in the Heartland Conference.
 
In the early going, NU pulled out to an 8-2 lead, highlighted by a Jeremy Espinoza 3 at the 18:04 mark.
 
A quick 10-0 run by the Rattlers put them up by four at 12-8 with 15:24 remaining. The Rattlers pushed the margin to 10 at 28-18 with 7 minutes left in the half on a layup.
 
With StMU still up by 10 at 30-20, NU cut the deficit to three with a 7-0 run. Ryan McCarthy knocked down a 3 with 5:07 remaining, and Espinoza scored on a jumper. A Reggie Baker layup at the 3:55 mark pulled NU to within three.
 
The Rattlers ended the half with four straight points to take a 39-31 lead into halftime.
 
In the second half, the Rattlers held a nine point advantage at 57-48 with 8:27 remaining. The Jets scored seven consecutive points to come within two points of the lead at 57-55. A Baker layup started the run, and then James Pegues threw down a fastbreak dunk at the 7:46 mark for a 57-52 score. Two Pegues free throws and one free throw from Espinoza pulled NU to within two with 5:37 remaining.
 
StMU went on a 15-2 run over the next 4 minutes to put the game away at 72-59 with 1:35 left. The 13-point margin held in the final minute and a half in the 78-65 game.
 
Espinoza scored a game-high 24 points on 6-of-7 shooting, including 4-for-4 from 3. Reggie Baker totaled 14 points, and McCarthy tallied 11 points. Cortrael Colbert finished with only two points, but had six steals and five assists.
 
NU finished shooting 38.8 percent (19-49) from the field.
 
St. Mary's shot 55.8 percent (29-52), including 41.2 percent (7-17) from 3. The Rattlers scored 34 points in the paint compared to 12 from NU. StMU also held a 31-23 advantage in rebounding.
 
Three Rattlers hit double figures. Marvin Whitt tallied 24 points, Kriston Minor scored 18 points and Justin Alexander added 16 points.
 
The Jets are back in action at Fugate Gymnasium on Thursday (Jan. 8). NU plays Lubbock Christian at 7:30 p.m. Audio, video and live stats are available for the game.