The Wildcats lost to the University of Texas of the Permian Basin Wednesday in Odessa, 95Â-81. ACU could not overcome a bad shooting in the second half as the Falcons outscored ACU 53-39 in the second half to capture the victory.
ACU shot 50 percent from the field in the first half, and the teams tied at the end of the first period, 42Â-42. ACU went cold in the second half, shooting 34.1 percent while the Falcons shot 51.7 percent.
After going down early in the second half. ACU went on a 13-3 run to regain a 63-61 lead with 12:47 left in the game. After exchanging baskets, however, UTPB started to pull away in the final seven minutes of the game. ACU tried to make a push at the end but came up short, as the Falcons made their free throws in the final two minutes to secure the victory.
The Wildcats fall to 2-2 and remain with no wins on the road this season. Preston Davis and Zach Williams led the Wildcats in scoring, adding 17 and 15, respectively. Ben Warton led the team in rebounds with seven.
Ke’Andre Derrick led the Falcons with 22 points. Derrick shot 7Â-8 from the field and 6-7 from the free throw line in the victory.
The Wildcats will be back in action Saturday when they start conference play against Texas A&M UniversityÂ-Commerce. ACU enters the game at 2Â-2, while the Lions are 4-0. After struggling last season in conference play, ACU will look to surprise some teams this year. The Wildcats were 1-11 last season in the Lone Star Conference.
“In the preconference games we have been working on gelling as a team so when we enter into conference we can take all the positives and roll with it,” Davis said. “Our coaches are hard on us and are pushing us to play harder.”
Coach Copeland missed the game due to health problems and was unavailable for comment.
The Wildcats will host the Lions at 4 p.m. Saturday in Moody Coliseum.
