DALLAS, Texas – The Nicholls State University basketball team scrapped with No. 18 SMU in front of a near-sellout crowd that included President George W. Bush, First Lady Laura Bush and U.S. Senator John Cornyn, but the Mustangs emerged with an 86-42 victory on Wednesday night at Moody Stadium.
 
The Colonels (3-6) knew they faced a tough challenge against an undefeated SMU team coming off of an 82-58 defeat of Michigan. The Mustangs (8-0) wasted no time jumping out to a 12-0 lead, three minutes into the ballgame. A jumper by Liam Thomas got Nicholls on the board, but SMU responded with an 8-0 run to grab a 20-2 advantage at the 14:32 mark. The two teams traded baskets over the remaining minutes, but the Mustangs gradually increased their lead, taking a 48-17 advantage into the break.
 
SMU picked up right where there they left off, opening the second period with an 11-2 run through the first five minutes of play. The Colonels continued to fight and put together a 13-5 run, punctuated by a Ja'Dante' Frye three-ball, with just under nine minutes remaining. The Mustangs quickly responded with 13 straight points, before Nicholls closed out the game on a high note, with an 8-3 run over the final three minutes.
 
The Colonels were held to 13.6% shooting from three-point range, and 25.4% overall. SMU shot 50.8% on the night, but Nicholls continued to show tough three-point defense, holding the Mustangs to just 20% from beyond the arc over the final 20 minutes.
 
The game was won and lost on the boards, with SMU earning a 62-25 rebounding edge. The Mustangs outscored the Colonels 48-22 on points in the paint, 16-4 on fast break points, 19-10 on second chance points and 15-9 on points off turnovers.
 
Nicholls won the turnover battle, committing only 11 turnovers while forcing 16. The Colonels grabbed nine steals in the game, compared to just five by SMU.
 
T.J. Carpenter finished with team-highs in points (12), boards (four), assists (three) and steals (one). Frye and Liam Thomas each contributed nine points, while Adam Ward grabbed four rebounds in the loss.
 
Ben Moore led the Mustangs with 22 points, 15 boards and eight assists, while Jordan Tolbert totaled 18 points and 23 rebounds in the victory.
 
Nicholls has a quick turnaround as the team heads to Boulder to play its third game in six days. The Colonels will battle Colorado at 8 p.m. central time on Friday, live on the PAC-12 Network.
 
For the most up-to-date information on Nicholls basketball, visit geauxcolonels.com.