UT Permian Basin men's basketball opened the Josh Newman era Friday night with a 101-98 win on the road at Adams State.

"Tonight was great," said UT Permian Basin head coach Josh Newman. "You want to win every game you coach, but it feels special. First time representing UTPB and we're proud to get our first win."

After leading for much of the first half, UTPB needed to come from behind in the second half. Adams State took their first lead in the second half at 16:27 and lead by as many as five points when a 3-pointer by Justice Augmon put the Grizzies ahead 71-66.

The Falcons scored the next six points, taking the lead back on four straight from Miles Washington and a layup by Jacob Ledoux for a 72-71 lead.

UTPB never trailed over the remaining minutes in the second half, but Adams State made a game of it. The Grizzlies tied the game at 89-89 on five straight points, but UTPB answered with a 3-pointer by Adam Rivera to go back ahead by three. 

Adams State was able to tie the game three times in the final five minutes, but the Falcons took the lead for good when Kyree Elder hit three of four from the free throw line in the final 31 seconds for a 101-98 lead. The Grizzlies missed a 3-point attempt to try and tie the game and a Rivera rebound sealed the win for the Falcons.

After the win, Newman was excited about what he saw on the offensive end, but knows his team can improve when defending the ball.

"We can score inside. We can score the ball," said Newman. "Those were two big positives tonight . We need to concentrate on our defense and defensive effort moving forward. Jamani Glover really stepped up early on and Miles Washington really came through in the second half for us."

Rivera and Elder led the Falcons offensively on the night, each scoring 17 points as two of seven players in double figures. Rivera was 5-10 from the field with a 6-6 night at the line and a team-best nine rebounds, and Elder added 6-11 from the floor with 5-7 shooting from the free throw line and a team-high six assists. 

Maurice Walton added 16 points for UTPB, hitting 6-7 of his field goal attempts with a perfect 4-4 night from the free throw line. Ledoux added 11 points and Xavier Ledet scored 10 points as all five of the Falcon starting line up ended the night in double figures.

Washington scored 14 points on 6-8 shooting with seven rebounds in just 18 minutes off the bench, and Glover contributed 10 points on a perfect 4-4 night from the field in 13 minutes played.

Davere Creighton led Adams State with 22 points, hitting four 3-pointers on the night. John Dewey added 19 points with a 10-11 evening at the free throw line for the Grizzlies.

The Falcons are back in action in Colorado Saturday night, taking on Western State Colorado at 6 p.m. in Gunnison, Colo.