LUBBOCK, Texas (December 10, 2015) – Six straight points by A.J. Luckey in the final two minutes of regulation forced overtime between the Chaps and fifth-ranked Angelo State, but Luckey's final attempt was off the mark and unable to force a second extra period in the final seconds against the Rams Thursday night inside the Rip Griffin Center. LCU held ASU to nearly 30 points below their scoring average but eventually dropped the 70-68 decision despite Tyler Rogers and Marcus Arrington tying their season highs with 17 and 16 points, respectively.
 
Tonight's contest marked the fourth time the Chaps have faced an NCAA Division II nationally ranked opponent since beginning the transition from the NAIA. In addition to today's loss, LCU has twice been defeated by Tarleton State when the Texans were ranked second and 12^th in the country and most recently lost to 10^th-ranked Colorado School of Mines.
 
LCU (6-2) and ASU (9-0) each shot an identical 25-of-64 from the field, but the Rams hit seven threes compared to two from the Chaps. LCU struggled from the line, hitting 16-of-24, while the Rams hit 13 of their 16 attempts. Ridrell Holman notched double-figures with a dozen points and Luckey added 11. Isaac Cardona struggled from the floor on 2-of-16 shooting but totaled a game-high 10 rebounds.
 
After holding the Rams to 17 first half points, ASU opened up after the break with a 12-3 run in four minutes to knot the game at 33-33. The Rams took their first lead of the night on a bucket by Stedman Allen within the next four minutes and he then scored two jumpers to put his team up 46-41. A three-pointer by Holman and a basket by Arrington tied the score at 46-all. Two free throws by Rogers and a score by Holman gave the Chaps a 50-46 lead, but Allen again stung the Chaps by scoring six straight points and teammate Tre Bennett hit a three to extend ASU's lead to 57-50 with 3:24 on the clock.
 
Luckey hit one-of-two at the line and Rogers grabbed an offensive board and threw down a putback to close within 57-53 with 2:30 remaining. ASU's Omari Gudul connected on a jumper before Luckey went on his six-point tear to force overtime.
 
The number five ranking by ASU did not intimidate the Chaps or Arrington in the early going, as the point guard made his way into the paint with a scoop layup while drawing a foul. Holman nailed a three-pointer from the right baseline for a 6-2 advantage, and a fast break dunk by Rogers upped the margin to 8-2. Another Arrington bucket in the paint gave the Chaps a 14-7 edge seven minutes in, and a baseline jumper by Rogers pushed LCU out to a nine-point lead.
 
A pair of free throws by Cardona provided the Chaps with their first double-digit lead of the evening at 28-17 with less than two minutes remaining until the half. Back-to-back scores by ASU's Prince Foster sliced the gap to 28-21 before Arrington corralled an offensive board and hit a putback while falling to the ground during the final seconds before the buzzer.
 
The Chaps hit the road for their first conference games of the season as they travel south to Texas A&M International Thursday at 7:30 p.m. followed by a 3 p.m. tip at St. Mary's Saturday.