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AUSTIN – The University of Texas of the Permian Basin men's basketball team shot 54 percent from the field and rode the hot hand of Erik Martin as the Falcons took a 56-53 win over St. Edward's.  The victory marks the second-straight Heartland Conference win as they improved to 8-12 overall. 
 
Martin finished with 16 points on 5-of-6 shooting and was 6-of-7 from the line with seven rebounds.  The senior was also key down the stretch as nine of his points came in the final three minutes of the game and accounted for all of the Falcons' scoring during that stint. 
 
The contest went back-and-fourth the entire 40 minutes as neither team led by more than seven points the entire contest.  The teams exchanged leads 11 different times and the game was also tied on 11 different occasions. 
 
UTPB's seven-point lead came with 16:43 left to play as it opened the second with a 6-0 run – all of which came from Branden Harrison, who finished with 13 points on the afternoon.  Although the teams exchanged buckets the entire contest, St. Edward's never led by more than three points – which came in the first half. 
 
The Falcons hit their shots when they needed to, making 58.8 percent in the second half and 8-of-11 free throws in the period. 
 
UTPB is now 2-5 in Heartland Conference games, while St. Edward's fell to 9-10 overall and 1-6 in league contests.  The Falcons will remain on the road as they  head to San Antonio on Thursday to take on St. Mary's for the second round of conference games.