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HOUSTON – After 12 consecutive Southland Conference games decided by seven points or less, the HBU men's basketball team amassed its largest margin of victory ever against a fellow Southland school in defeating Northwestern State 92-54 inside Sharp Gym on Wednesday evening. The win was the Huskies' most lopsided win against a Division I opponent since January 31, 1984 when HBU defeated Prairie View A&M, 72-33.
 
Seven different players, including the starting five, scored at least nine points for HBU (10-14, 6-7 SLC) in a complete team effort.
 
An Ishmael Lane layup just over two minutes into the game tied things at 2-2 and that was the closest Northwestern State (10-17, 5-9 SLC) would get the rest of the game. After Lane's second bucket made it 5-4 in HBU's favor the Huskies scored the next five to lead by six a little more than four minutes in.
 
At the 10:22 mark, Edward Hardt sank a pair of free throws to put the Huskies ahead 20-13 before Vonte Ott dropped in a fast break layup followed by a Deandre Love three to bring the Demons within two. Later in the half, a seven-point run by the Huskies included five points from Oliver Lynch-Daniels and was capped by a Philip McKenzie layup that made it a 32-22 game with 4:36 left in the half. The Huskies then took a 38-29 lead into the locker room at the half.
 
The Huskies then opened the second period with a 12-2 run in less than a three minute span to lead 50-31. The Demons scored the next four to pull within 15 but from there on out HBU built its lead throughout the half with the Huskies' largest scoring run of the game being just eight during that opening 12-2 run in the second half.
 
Senior Braxton Bonds led the Huskies with 13 points while adding six assists, six rebounds and three steals. Bonds leads the conference in steals per game, averaging 2.9 per SLC contest. Ty Dalton finished just shy of recording his second double-double in the last three games with 10 points and a team-high nine rebounds while adding four assists.
 
Hardt ended the night with 10 points and eight rebounds while Lynch-Daniels also had 10, as did Stephen O'Suji. Qon Murphy scored nine points, grabbed six boards while adding two assists and two blocked shots off the bench while Ian DuBose also had nine points, five rebounds and a pair of blocks.
 
HBU scored 54 points in the second half, shooting at a 54.1 percent (20-of-27) clip in the period. For the game, the Huskies held a 52-36 advantage on the boards with 16 of those coming on the offensive glass. HBU also scored 50 of its points inside the paint.
 
The Huskies finished the night with eight blocked shots and forced 18 turnovers while committing just 10.
 
Lane led all players with 18 points and 10 rebounds, though HBU held the senior to just four points and three rebounds in the second half.Malik Metoyer added 10 points for the Demons.
 
The Huskies travel north on I-45 on Saturday, Feb. 23, to take on conference-leading Sam Houston State in Huntsville at the Johnson Coliseum with tip-off set for 7:00 p.m.