LAWTON, Okla. – The scrappy Cameron men's basketball team could not cool off the red-hot St Mary's Rattlers falling 86-72 on Thursday night; seniors Jordan Lewis and Tyler Williams finished with 13 points each for CU.
 
The Aggies had to deal with adversity within the first two minutes of action, seeing the Rattlers storm out on a 12-0 run to start the contest. The Rattlers used their size to dominate on the glass seeing them hold a 7-4 advantage on the boards at the first media timeout.
 
Out of the halftime break, the Black and Gold were able to regroup, cutting the Rattlers lead to single digits shortly after the break in the action. CU's opposition would not quit though, quickly extending their lead back out to a 12-point cushion.
 
StMU eventually saw their lead swell to 18 points behind a big presence in the paint, scoring 18 points down low and grabbing 29 rebounds in the first half. The Rattlers were able to work inside and out nailing 50 percent of their three-point shots as well.
 
CU battled to start the second half pulling within nine points behind a solid effort from senior guard Tyler Williams, who turned in 11 points by the second media timeout in the second half to lead all Cameron scorers.
 
Despite being down by double digits most of the contest, the Aggies continued to hang around and chip away at the Rattlers lead. But, with each push CU made StMU would keep the team at arm's length.
 
Darius Green provided a huge spark off the Aggie bench, scoring 12 points midway through the second half. Green played a major part in the CU's bench outscoring the Rattlers' second unit 34-23.
 
Joseph Clark helped Cameron swing the rebounding category with his nine boards to pair with his eight points and an assist. The Black and Gold ended up winning the rebounding edge 43-40 after a slow start on the glass.
           
Lewis joined Williams and Green in double figures with 13, as the senior from Houston, Texas went 3-for-6 from deep.
 
The Rattlers were led by Caleb Jordan, who poured in 24 points and five assists.
 
Cameron will face another tough test on Saturday, Jan. 11, when they host the No. 7 ranked St. Edward's Hilltoppers at 4 p.m.