CANYON, Texas (November 19, 2015) – Isaac Cardona's first career double-double of 22 points and 15 rebounds paced Lubbock Christian University to a 74-64 win over West Texas A&M, while A.J. Luckey scored 18 points and Michael Grant added 11 for the Chaparrals Thursday night inside the First United Bank Center.
 
The Chaps (2-1, 0-0 Heartland) survived an onset of three-pointers from the Buffs (1-2, 0-0 Lone Star) who hit 10-of-30 from deep compared to a 0-of-7 showing by LCU. The last time the Chaps won a contest despite not making a single three-pointer was during the 2011-12 season, head coach Todd Duncan's first year leading the Chaps, in a defeat of Southern Nazarene with a 0-for-9 output from beyond the arc. Despite the long-range shooting disparity, LCU outrebounded WT 45-to-31 and hit 16-of-19 from the free throw line compared to 14-of-22 by the Buffs.
 
Back-to-back buckets by Luckey midway through the first half gave the Chaps their largest lead up to that point at 16-9, but that quickly changed in favor of WT following two free throws and a three-pointer by Eric Golightly, Jr. and a trey from David Chavlovich. A layup by Chavlovich extended the Buff advantage to 30-22 at the 5:04 mark before a Marcus Arrington layup and two free throws each by Luckey and Grant sliced the deficit to two. The lead changed hands three times within the final 87 seconds of the half, and an Arrington basket sent the Chaps into the locker room with a 34-33 advantage.
 
LCU used a 7-0 run during the second half to take a 53-46 lead with just under 10 minutes to play, but a pair of WT threes on two occasions pulled the Buffs to within a deuce. A Cardona score in the paint gave the Chaps a 61-57 edge with 5:48 on the clock, but WT continued to stay close, trailing by three with two-and-a-half minutes remaining. A basket by Arrington made it a two-possession game with 1:33 on the clock and two free throws by Luckey stretched the Chap lead to 71-64. A dunk by Tyler Rogers off a Luckey assist handed LCU a 73-63 cushion with less than a minute left to stamp the victory.
 
The Chaps compete in their home opener Saturday at 3 p.m. against Our Lady of the Lake.