SAN ANGELO, Texas– Joel Murray and Jon'il Fugett combined for 44 points as No. 3 West Texas A&M overcame a slow start to defeat Angelo State, 73-59, on Saturday afternoon to clinch the divisional title. The Buffs have now won nine straight over the Rams and improve to 23-1 overall and 15-1 in Lone Star Conference play.

After scoring only 10 points in the opening 16 minutes of the first half, WT scored 15 points over the final four minutes to lead 25-21 at halftime. Murray was the only WT player to hit a shot in the opening 10 minutes before hitting a jumper at 3:47 to spark a 15-1 run for the visitors. Fugett would score the final six points of the half including an old-fashioned 3-point play with a second remaining.

WT would start much better in the second half pushing the lead to nine, 36-27, at 16:37 on a layup from Murray. Five minutes later, they saw themselves down a point, 43-42, following a pair of free throws from Collin Turner. Derrick Geddis would help the Buffs retake the lead on the following possession following a nice pass from JT Warren. 

Neither team could get any separation over the next five minutes as the lead changed four times including three ties. Murray hit two free throws with a little more than five minutes remaining to give the Buffs a 55-53 lead. The lead would reach six, 60-54, at 3:59 on a Murray 3-pointer as a result of an offensive rebound from Grant. 

Eric Mosley would come up big for the Buffs in crunch time making both of his attempts from beyond the arc to make it a nine point game, 66-57, with a little more than two minutes remaining. WT would finish the game on a 7-0 run, five of those points coming from their charity stripe, as they finished divisional play a perfect 10-0. 

Murray led the Buffs in scoring for the third straight game with 23 points and four assists going 7-of-16 from the floor, 1-of-3 from downtown and 8-of-11 from the charity stripe. Fugett had a career-high 21 points and nine rebounds, seven of those coming on the offensive glass. Grant chipped in nine points while pulling down a career-high 15 rebounds. 

The Buffs welcome Tarleton to the First United Bank Center on Thursday, Feb. 13. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m.