MARSHALL, Texas – A second half surge by the East Texas Baptist University offense of 57 points put them past Hardin-Simmons University, 90-75, in their American Southwest Conference opener. With the win, ETBU moves their home winning streak to 24 games dating back to the 2013-14 season.

ETBU improves to 5-1 overall and 1-0 in conference play. Hardin-Simmons goes to 4-4 and 1-1 in ASC games. Trailing by a 35-33 margin at halftime, ETBU made improvements across the board in its field-goal, 3-point and free-throw percentages during the second half to come away with the win.

A second-half spurt was crucial for ETBU as they converted 10-straight shots from the floor, going from a 49-46 edge to a 73-59 advantage. In the final half, ETBU shot 60.6 percent from the field (20-of-33), 78.6 percent from the foul line (11-of-14) and hit a half dozen 3-point shots. Additionally, ETBU finished with nearly twice as many assists as turnovers in the second half (11-to-6).

"We came in knowing that it'd be a hard fight, and the first half we really found that out, but we were able to rally together and get it done," said Eric Horton.

Junior Mitchell led all players with 24 points, 17 of them coming in the second half. He shot eight-of-13 from the floor and converted three 3-point shots. Mitchell also had four rebounds and five assists. Dylan Augustine contributed 17 points, including four 3-point baskets, to go along with two rebounds and three assists.

Eric Horton finished with 12 points, five rebounds and two assists. Jamil Samuel had eight points as well as 11 rebounds, two assists and two blocks. Off the bench for ETBU, Isaiah Thomas hit six-of-eight shots from the field and chipped in 12 points, four rebounds, two assists, and two steals. Jordan Quillian added eight points and four assists.

For Hardin-Simmons, Justin Jones totaled 15 points, 12 rebounds and five blocks. Christian O'Neal had 21 points while Nathaniel Jack contributed 13 points and 10 rebounds. Cameron Barnes chipped in 11 points, five rebounds and two assists.

In the opening half, Hardin-Simmons held a 14-point lead with 4:55 until the half after a successful 3-point shot by O'Neal made the score 31-17. Ahead by a 13-10 margin nine minutes into the game, Hardin-Simmons went on an 18-7 run for that 31-17 advantage. During that spurt, O'Neal hit a pair of 3-pointers, while Caleb Spoon and Barnes also contributed a 3-point shot apiece.

Down the stretch, however, ETBU began to whittle away at its deficit and closed the first half on a 16-4 run to trail, 35-33, at the halftime buzzer. In this span, Augustine, Horton and Samuel combined for all 16 points. Augustine hit three 3-point shots, while Horton contributed five points during the run.

Later on in the second half, ETBU held a slim 46-44 advantage before pulling away. During a stretch of 10-consecutive successful shots, ETBU converted four-of-four 3-point baskets. Five ETBU players combined for 24 points, including eight by Thomas, six by Mitchell and five by Horton.

For the day, ETBU shot 48.6 percent from the floor (34-of-70). Conversely, Hardin-Simmons hit 35.1 percent of its field-goal attempts (26-of-74), including 10-of-41 3-point shots (24.4 percent). Hardin-Simmons edged ETBU in rebounding, 44-to-42.

Up next for ETBU is a home game against ASC opponent Louisiana College at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday.