PORTALES, N.M. – Up by one point in the final five seconds of a crucial road game against (RV) Midwestern State, Eastern New Mexico was able to disrupt the Mustangs flow offensively and survive with a 70-69 victory.

"We have really competitive guys," said head coach Daven Võ in a postgame interview with Doc Elder. "We stayed together, and we were mentally tough all night long."

It almost felt like déjà vu to open the first half for Eastern New Mexico as they started on a short scoring spree similar to how they did so just less than four weeks ago against the same MSU squad. This time, it was a 6-0 lead for ENMU over the opening two minutes thanks to a trio of Greyhound scorers – Cougar Downing, Mario Whitley, and Treyvon Byrd.

Six points (two possessions) would be the largest lead that any team would have for the rest of the game.

The Mustangs began a push as they sunk six three pointers over the next 12 minutes of play to tie the game, 27-27. ENMU would win the battle of the final six minutes of the period and took a 39-35 lead into halftime intermission.

Midwestern State began the second half with urgency. The Mustangs scored the half's first eight points and quickly held their largest advantage of the game, 43-39, with 18:03 left in the contest.

With MSU holding the lead, ENMU would only take the lead at three different points for the remainder of the game. The first instance came with 13:11 left (49-48). The second came with 7:32 left (60-59). The final time came with 2:01 left (67-64) on a three point make from senior Cougar Downing.

MSU would follow the Downing three by tying the game on a Reggie Hill deep shot, but Eastern would respond instantly with a three point make from Mario Whitley. The Mustangs got the contest within one-point, 70-69, on a layup on the following possession. The home side got the ball back with 19 seconds left after a Whitley missed jumper, but a sneaky defensive stop from Treyvon Byrd disrupted the MSU momentum.

Midwestern State would get a second chance with the ball after a missed free throw from ENMU. This time, Eastern focused on guarding the Mustangs point guard, Pierre Sanders, and forced a difficult shot. The peculiar part of the game was that during the final possession, the clock never started. The officials gathered around the replay monitor and determined that more than five seconds had gone away from the clock and that resulted in the game finishing in the favor of Eastern New Mexico.

"All the close games that we won have come down to us playing defense," said Võ after the win. "We got two big stops at the end."

Byrd's two defensive stops proved to be the difference maker in a win that propels Eastern New Mexico to 8-6 in Lone Star Conference play. The junior finished with 13 points on 4-of-7 shooting, but what speaks highly of his play tonight are his nine rebounds, two assists, block, and steal.

"We knew it was going to be a dog fight," said senior forward Mario Whitley after the victory. "We played all as one tonight."

The battle between two programs inching towards a berth in the Lone Star Conference tournament proved to be a battle for all 40 minutes.

Whitley reminisced on last year's blowout loss to MSU in Wichita Falls from last season and how it gave him additional motivation for tonight. He was quick to mention the hostile environment, which includes a crowd that sits directly against the sideline at D.L. Ligon Coliseum. Just like in 2024, the MSU football team provided an electric atmosphere for a great battle in the LSC.

The matchup did get chippy with the crowd and some Greyhounds student-athletes, but the Hounds kept their focus and finished the game strong picking up their first win in Wichita Falls since 2019.

"We stuck together and kept our composure," said Downing after the win during a postgame radio interview. "We knew to keep our heads."

Downing finished the game with a team-high 19 points, including five made three pointers.

Whitley joined Downing in double figures as he picked up 13 points and eight rebounds along with three assists. Another player who had a quiet impact for ENMU was Jose Murillo. Murillo played a team-high 38 minutes and secured six points and five rebounds.

Tonight marked Cooper Jackson's first game for ENMU since a December win over Navajo Tech. Jackson provided a much-needed electric spark for Eastern. The Kansas native scored seven points, but mostly made his impact with ball handling duties. He dished out four assists and had two steals on a night where he only turned over the ball once.

Freshman Mo Austin continued his impressive play. The team's starting point guard scored eight points on 3-of-4 shooting along with grabbing the third most rebounds (6) on the team. He joined Jackson with two steals as well.

For a sixth-straight game, Eastern New Mexico shot above 50% from the floor. This time, it came against a program that leads the Lone Star Conference in field goal percentage defense. ENMU made 27-of-53 (50.9%) from the floor while scoring 30 points in the paint and 22 points in fastbreak situations. Eastern also made nine three pointers for the second time in their last three contests.

Eastern New Mexico now turns their focus to a matchup with Lubbock Christian on Saturday afternoon. The Hounds will look to avenge a loss they had earlier in the season to the Chaps.