The Wildcats edged Dallas Christian 72­-68 at home last Monday night. ACU improved to 2-1 on the early season.

“I didn’t think we played very well. I felt that we had some guys that were ready to go home for thanksgiving, but anytime you get a win it’s a good thing,” Coach Jason Copeland said. “Hopefully it is a wake-­up call for us, because we are going to have to play harder in order to compete with teams in our league.”

ACU struggled with shooting in the first half, going 12-34 from the field. However, ACU still managed to take a 36­-32 lead into the locker room at halftime.

ACU would come out in the second half and shoot much better, going 13­-18 which allowed them to protect its four-point lead. ACU went on a key 8-0 run to grab a 57-50 lead. The Crusaders would battle back, cutting the score to 71-68 with 1:51 left in the game. However, neither team would score in the next few possessions allowing Alex Richman to sink a free throw with four seconds left in the game to seal the victory for the Wildcats.

ACU dominated the boards out­-rebounding DCC 35-23 for the game. Giordan Cole led the Wildcats in scoring and rebounds with 16 points and eight rebounds. Desmond Woodberry was also in double digits for the Wildcats, adding 11 points and five rebounds.

Isaac Gonzalez led the all scorers with 21 points in the game for the Crusaders. Gonzalez also added nine rebounds in a losing effort.

The Wildcats will travel to Odessa on Wednesday to take on the Falcons of the University of Texas­-Permian Basin. ACU enters the game with a 2­-1 record for the early season, while the Falcons are 1­-5. This will be the second time these teams will match up this season, with ACU pulling out the first game 80-79 at home.

“I think we have played pretty well. Our defense is not where it needs to be yet, but we are working out the kinks and hopefully can continue to improve,” junior Ben Warton said. “We have a big road game coming up. They just beat Angelo State, so they are a pretty good team.”

The Wildcats and Falcons will tip­­ off at 7 p.m.

“It is a tough place to play over there,” Copeland said. “It is a game we are defiantly going to have to get ready for if we want to win.”