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Alonzo Dodd (10) drives towards the goal during the Lions' game against Nicholls Monday. Dodd scored 15 points in the Lions' 72-51 loss. Lion Athletics Photo by Leighton Chamblee
LAKE CHARLES, La. – The 2023-24 season came to a close for the Texas A&M University-Commerce men's basketball team on Monday night with a 72-51 to loss at the Legacy Center to the Nicholls Colonels in the Southland Conference Tournament Quarterfinals.
The Lions end the season with a record of 13-20, having gone 13-20 in both their seasons in NCAA Division I. Nicholls, 1913, advances to Tuesday's semifinals against A&M-Corpus Christi.
Monday night marked the final games in the collegiate careers for seniors Kalen Williams and Tommie Lewis.
The Colonels scored the first seven points of the game, holding the Lions scoreless for the first three minutes and six seconds of the game. The Lions used a 5-1 run to come to within three at the 15:40 mark.
After making their first three shots of the game, the Colonels missed five of their next six, as a dunk from Kwo Agwa cut it to 11-10 with 13:24 left in the half.
Nicholls started a Lion scoring drought of 4:45, while building back a 2110 lead, making four of five shots, while the Lions went 0 for 7. Lewis ended the scoring drought with a layup.
The Lions made three field goals in a row as part of a 7-0 run, to come to within 23-18, but the Colonels used a 11-0 run to go up 16, taking their largest lead of the half.
James 'Pop' Weathers (Baton Rouge, La.) hit a three-pointer with 1:34 left in the half, to end the scoring run and make it a 34-21 lead for Nicholls at halftime.
The Lions shot 29.6% from the field with four of the eight made field goals coming from deep. Nicholls went 12 for 23 from the field, making five of its eight free throws, while the Lions had just two attempts at the line, going 1 for 2.
Both Williams and Alonzo Dodd had five points each for the Lions in the first half, while Rob Brown III scored 12 and Diante Smith added 10. Nicholls outrebounded A&M-Commerce, 20-11, in the first half.
Khaliq Abdul-Mateen drilled a three pointer for the Lions to make it 34-24, scoring the first points for either team in the first half, but the Colonels then went on a 11-0 run to go up 21.
A quick run of five straight baskets and seven points in a row, brought the Lions to within 54-37, forcing the Colonels to use a timeout, but Nicholls pushed its lead back up to 20.
Dodd finished the game with 15 points, while Williams totaled 12 points and eight rebounds. Lewis added three points, three assists, and four steals.
Brown III scored 18, Smith had 14, Quinn Strander finished the game with 11 in the game for the Colonels.
Monday was the 100th career game played by Abdul-Mateen, all coming as a Lion.