PORTALES, N.M. – A deep three-point bucket with just seconds remaining on the clock gave the Eastern New Mexico men's basketball team a 70-68 win over Tarleton State on Thursday night.

The shot from sophomore Devin Pullum from well beyond the three-point line right in front of his own bench with just three seconds remaining on the clock keeps the Hounds unbeaten on their home floor and moves Eastern New Mexico into fourth place in the Lone Star Conference standings with a record of 4-3. Pullum was one of four Hounds to finish with double-digit scoring figures including senior Zach Parker, who led the team with 17 points.

Parker hit four of a team-high 12 three-point buckets made on the night in a hotly contested game from start to finish. In a game presented by Wells Fargo, neither team extended a lead that reached double digits throughout the entirety of the game.

After a slow start offensively for both teams that saw the score in favor of Tarleton State 13-12 with 10:46 remaining in the first half, the Texans looked like they were going to have a sustainable advantage at the halftime break up nine points with 1:58 remaining. Two three-point buckets from senior Nick Brown and two solid defensive stands just before half allowed the Hounds to enter the locker room down just 35-32.

Both teams battled back and forth throughout the first ten minutes of the second half with Tarleton State maintaining a slight 51-48 lead with 10:42 remaining on the clock. Six unanswered points for the Texans beginning at the 9:09 mark provided them with their largest lead of the second half at 59-51 with 8:06 remaining.

Eastern answered with a run of their own and evened the score back up at 60-60 thanks to two free throw makes from Brown with just over five minutes to play. The Hounds forced a turnover on the following possession which set up a Parker three pointer to give the Hounds the lead for the first time since the opening moments of the game.

Senior Chukuka Emili hauled in a crucial rebound with just over three minutes remaining and drew a foul to head to the free throw line and converted on both opportunities to put the Hounds ahead by four. The New City, New York native then answered a dunk from Tarleton State star Josh Hawley on the ensuing possession with a slam of his own to regain the four point advantage for Eastern.

Tarleton State would then go on to make five free throws to regain the lead with 17 seconds left at 68-67. Head coach Tres Segler called a timeout following the advancement of the ball past the half-court line to set up Pullum with the opportunity to find just enough space with seconds remaining on the clock to provide the game-winning shot.

Tarleton State inbounded the ball successfully and got a shot off at the last second that came up just short to seal the 70-68 Eastern New Mexico victory.

The win snaps a three-game losing streak for The Hounds and gives them back to back wins for the first time over Tarleton State since 1996. The last four contests between the two programs have been decided by a total of six points.

Eastern New Mexico matched their season low with just 11 turnovers and made 14-of-18 shots from the free throw line to give themselves a chance moving down the stretch. The Hounds limited the Texans to just five field goals in the second half, but continually committed costly fouls, sending Tarleton to the line 29 times in the second half alone.

Emili finished the night with 10 points and eight boards while going 4-of-6 from the field and converted all four of his free throw attempts. Brown also had a solid night from the field finishing with 14 points for the contest.

Eastern New Mexico will now look ahead to Saturday afternoon's contest with Texas A&M-Commerce in a game presented by the Roosevelt General Hospital. The Lions entered the weekend ranked #20 in the national polls, but suffered an 87-66 defeat at the hands of West Texas A&M earlier this evening. Tip off for that contest is scheduled for 4 p.m.