Diop, Julien help SE Louisiana stave off Texas A&M-CC 84-80

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (AP) — Pape Diop scored 23 points and Southeastern Louisiana held off a late push to defeat Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 84-80 on Saturday.

Von Julien added 20 points for the Lions, including two free throws with four seconds remaining to make it a two-possession game after Texas A&M-CC cut the gap to 81-78.

The Islanders trailed by as many as 26 before Jordan Hairston’s layup capped a 6-0 burst cutting the deficit to three points.

Diop shot 5-for-8 from the floor and was 13-of-15 from the line. Julien was 10-for-11 at the foul line. Ty Brewer added 19 points for Southeastern Louisiana (4-10, 1-2 Southland Conference), which ended its four-game losing streak. Byron Smith added 10 points.

Southeastern Louisiana led 45-23 at the break after dominating the first half. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi mounted a charge in the second half, scoring a season-high 57 points.

Irshaad Hunte scored a career-high 18 points for the Islanders (5-10, 1-3). Hairston added 13 points. Javae Lampkins had 11 points.

The teams combined for 52 fouls, Texas A&M-CC scoring 24 points at the line (on 29 tries), and SE Louisiana making 27 of 35.

Southeastern Louisiana takes on Sam Houston State on the road on Wednesday. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi takes on Stephen F. Austin on the road on Wednesday.