PORTALES, N.M. – Eastern New Mexico men's basketball squeaked out a 76-74 win over Lone Star Conference foe, Cameron.

"Cameron is probably the best 0-2 team in our conference," emphasized head coach Daven Võ after the win. "Cameron is really good."

ENMU came into the matchup ranked 12th in the nation in total rebounds per game. The goal for the program was to attack loose balls and grab as many rebounds as possible.

Both teams stayed deadlocked in the rebounding battle as the Greyhounds and Aggies finished with 39 rebounds. However, Eastern New Mexico managed to secure 21 offensive rebounds. The effort on the glass helped ENMU score 21 points on second chance opportunities.

"Our guys did what we asked them to do," said Võ in his postgame remarks. "The ball rolled our way this time."

The game was an intense battle fought between two teams inching towards a crucial conference win.

Early on, ENMU took a 5-0 lead off a pair of baskets from their senior leadership. A two-point basket from Cougar Downing and a three-pointer from Mario Whitley helped Eastern New Mexico hold the early advantage. However, five points would end up being their largest advantage of the entire matchup.

Cameron proceeded to outscore the Hounds 17-4 over the next five minutes of play to take their largest lead of the entire game, 17-9. Midway through the first half, the Hounds clawed their way back into the contest, including taking a brief lead with seven minutes remaining in the period.

From that point, the game stayed with two possessions until the very end.

ENMU relied heavily on their seniors in the win. Cougar Downing had one of his best games in his time in Portales. The Kansas native scored a whopping 28 points while shooting 10-of-19 from the floor. Võ was most impressed with Downing's physicality and hustle in the game. The Hounds coach shared his appreciation for the five rebounds that his senior guard hauled in.

One other student-athlete scored in double figures. Treyvon Byrd was nearly flawless against the Aggies. He finished the day with 19 points, four rebounds, two assists, and two steals.

Eastern New Mexico continues to be a worry for opposing offenses. The program ranks sixth in the nation with 13.4 steals per game. They nearly hit that mark tonight with 12 total swipes. Junior Cooper Jackson led the way with five and both Whitley and Byrd had two each.

Both teams went into the halftime intermission tied, 36-36. Võ told his team "it was going to be a fight until the very end" and "we can't be out toughed." He specifically wanted to focus on winning the 50-50 plays.

Eastern New Mexico forced Cameron to commit eight second half turnovers and seven of the team's 12 steals came in the final period of play.

The final five minutes proved to be the reason why ENMU improved to 6-2 (2-1 LSC) this season. At the five-minute mark, Eastern was trailing, 69-66.

Treyvon Byrd got the Greyhounds started with a second chance, tip-in layup. That was followed by a steal and score by Cooper Jackson, which ended up turning into a three-point play as Jackson was fouled on his drive to the basket. Downing got to the free throw line and the Hounds extended their lead to four.

Cameron managed to get within one point (75-74) on a three-pointer from Reggie Prudhomme. On the next possession, Mo Austin made the front end on a trip to the charity stripe. He just missed the second shot and Cameron had 20 seconds on the clock to find a way to score.

CU quickly got the ball to Prudhomme and he began to work backwards to the side of the visitor's bench. Austin forced a tough look from behind the arc and the shot missed just short. The clock hit 0:00 and ENMU earned their second conference win this week.

Eastern New Mexico will hit the road next weekend for two games in south Texas. They will face Texas A&M International Sunday, December 15 at 12 p.m. TAMIU men's basketball is 5-6 (1-2 LSC) after dropping a pair of road games to UT Permian Basin and Angelo State.