Eagles pull away in second half, open season with road win

FARMERS BRANCH, Texas — A&M-Texarkana turned an eight-point halftime deficit into an 11-point victory Saturday, outscoring Dallas Christian College by almost 20 points in the second half to take a 77-66 road win to start the 2023-24 season.

The Eagles (1-0) shot 52 percent (13-of-25) from the floor in the second half and finished at 44 percent (24-of-55) for the night while getting a double-double from Chris Coley (12 points, 13 rebounds) and a game-high 25 from Lavelle Zeigler.

The Eagles got 34 points from their bench, largely in part to Dezmond Washington, who in just 16 minutes managed to score 20 points, grab nine rebounds and swipe a pair of steals.

DCC (1-2) led by as many as 11 points (29-18) at the 7:00 mark of the first half and again after a three-point shot to start the second half and go ahead by a 41-30 margin. But the Eagles responded with a 15-2 run to take a 45-43 lead with 14 minutes to play.

The hosts would take their final lead midway into the second half at 50-49, but it was all TAMUT from that point as the Eagles converted key opportunities from the free throw line to seal the deal. The Eagles made 17 of 22 attempts from the stripe in the second half.

A&M-Texarkana opens its home schedule Saturday when the Eagles host Ottawa (Ks.) at 2 pm.