DURANT, Okla. – In a well fought battle that lasted from the very first tip, the Henderson State University men's basketball team (3-2, 0-1 GAC) was unable to drain a last second shot as the Reddies fell, 65-62, in their first Great American Conference game to Southeastern Oklahoma State University in the Bloomer Sullivan Arena on Thursday evening.

Although Henderson State shot four percent better from the field than the Savage Storm, the Reddies only hit 46.7 percent from the free-throw line, as HSU dropped its second game in this early 2013-14 season.

Three Reddies finished the game in double-figures, led by Ronald Lawson (Jr., East St. Louis, Ill.) who scored 15 points. Taylor Smith and Reggie Murphy added 13 and 12 points, respectively.

HSU started hot from the floor shooting 57.1 percent in the first half, led by Smith, scoring 10 points. The junior from Kensett, Ark. drained three 3-pointers to pace HSU to a two-point lead in the first 20 minutes of play.

Smith nailed the first basket of the game as he spotted up from a dish from Melvin Haynes (Sr., Akron, Ohio) just 26 seconds in the game.

After a steal from Aaron Harwell (Houston, Texas), the senior drove it to the basket for an early lay in and HSU saw a five-point lead, 7-2, at the 16:25 mark.

The closing minutes in the second half become a nail bitter, as the teams stayed within a few points of each other.

Harwell came up with the steal off Southeastern Oklahoma State's inbound pass and Murphy (Jr., Los Angeles, Calif.) picked up the ball after the hustle play to pull within one, 58-57, with 2:15 left on the clock.

The Reddies, who trailed merely by one with 36 seconds left, couldn't stop the clutch jumper by SOSU with two seconds left on the shot clock, putting HSU down by three, 62-59.

HSU turned the ball over with less than 20 seconds left, leaving their only option to foul. As the Savage Storm hit both free throws, Henderson State was faced with a two possession deficit with 15 seconds left.

Melvin Haynes made it a two-point game by hitting the three as the clocked ticked down to 7.2 seconds. Southeastern Oklahoma State, who finished the game shooting 78.6 percent from the charity line, hit both free throws, still allowing the Reddies a shot to tie it up.

As Kevin Kozan (Fr., New Lenox, Ill.) dribbled the ball up the court and the clock winding down, he dished it to Haynes who threw up the shot hitting the side of the rim, as HSU fell 65-62.

The Reddies will stay on the road as they will battle East Central University in a conference matchup on Saturday at 4 p.m. in Ada, Okla.

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