MONTICELLO, AR - Ben Marello scored 20 points but Henderson State fell on Thursday night to first-place Arkansas-Monticello, 78-72, in Monticello, Arkansas. 

The first half proved to be close, as the lead changed hands 12 times in the first 20 minutes of play. With 8:17 left in the first period, Kevin Kozan gave Henderson its largest lead of the half, 27-23, on a long 3-pointer, but the Boll Weevils used a 15-6 run over the next eight minutes to take a 38-33 lead into the break.

UAM opened the second half on a 12-4 run to seize a 50-37 lead with 17:12 remaining, but the Reddies slowly chipped away with a gradual 14-7 stretch of their own to cut the deficit to just six points, 57-51, on another 3-pointer from Kozan with 9:48 to play. The Weevils quickly extended the lead back out to double figures and kept HSU at bay over the next five minutes. Again, the Reddies found a way to cut the lead to just six points on two free throws from Chris Hawkins with 2:43 to go, but Henderson could not get any closer, as UAM scored the next two buckets to pull away and ultimately win it 78-72.

Marello had a big game for HSU with 20 points, nine rebounds, three steals and two blocks, while Kozan chipped in 15 points and Kaylon Tappin added 11. The Reddies won the turnover battle 17-16, but allowed the Weevils to shoot 50.9 percent from the field in the loss. The defeat drops Henderson to 13-9 on the season and 8-8 in Great American Conference play. 

The Reddies' next game is Saturday at 3 p.m. against Southern Arkansas in Magnolia, Arkansas.