By Nick Eatman
     ALLEN, Texas – They might be newcomers to the Lone Star Conference, but UT Permian Basin has looked rather comfortable in its two wins here in the LSC Championship, including a decisive 76-63 win over Texas A&M-Commerce Saturday night.
     The Falcons have now won six straight games after beating the Lions, which sends them to Sunday's final against Angelo State at 3:30 p.m. in Allen.
     Four different UTPB players scored in double figures, led by James McPherson's 19 points. Daeshon Francis had 17 with five rebounds and three blocks. Josh Morris added 15 and Johnny Lacy scored 10 with three steals. Sammy Allen had just two points but did his work on the boards, hauling down 15 rebounds.
     The Lions (19-10) were paced by Malik Albert, who had 18 points, and Trey Seymore scored 16 with six rebounds.
     The two teams went back and forth early in the game but it wasn't long before the Falcons seized control. Leading 20-19 midway through the first half, McPherson ignited a 10-0 run with a 4-point play and then a layup. Francis followed with a monster jam in the paint and two free throws to extend the lead to double-digits.
     And just before halftime, Francis hit another 3-pointer at the buzzer to give UTPB a 41-27 advantage. On Thursday night against Midwestern State, Francis hit a 69-footer that will likely go down as the shot of the tournament so far.
     In the second half, the Lions were down by as much as 18 but eventually cut the lead to eight with 13:01 to play. But again, the Falcons had an answer as Lacy drilled a 3-pointer and the lead never got back to single digits.
     The win also helps the Falcons' case for the No. 1 seed in next week's regional tournament. Currently the second seed, UTPB is hoping to jump Colorado Mines for the top spot and a chance to host the regional in Odessa.
     For the Lions, they will wait for the regional pairings to see if their season will extend to the NCAA tournament. A&M-Commerce was sixth in the latest rankings and have added a victory over third-ranked West Texas A&M this weekend before Saturday's loss to the Falcons.
UT Permian Basin Notes
·         UT Permian Basin moved its record to 2-0 in the LSC Tournament as a first-year member
·         UTPB is now 15-1 over its last 16 games and has won six straight
·         James McPherson scored a game-high 19 points
·         Sammy Allen pulled down a game-high 15 rebounds
·         The Falcons led for 35 minutes of the contest and the teams were tied for just over four minutes
·         UTPB outrebounded the Lions 49-to-39
·         Four Falcons scored in double figures for the second time in the tournament
Texas A&M-Commerce Notes
·         Malik Albert scored a team-high 18 points, his 24th double-digit scoring effort this season.
·         Trey Seymore scored 16 points. It's his 24th game scoring in double figures this season.
·         The Lions were 5 of 23 on 3-pointers (21 percent), their third worst percentage this season from behind the arc.
·         Marquieth Morris grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds. It's Morris' second game of double-digit rebounds this season.
·         The Lions finished with six assists as a team. It's the third time the Lions finished with under 10 assists against UTPB this season.
·         A&M-C extended their LSC record of tournament appearances to 38, including 13 straight seasons.?
