SAN ANGELO – The Angelo State men's basketball team was outscored 17-4 on second-chance points and fell 65-55 to Midwestern State on Saturday in a Lone Star Conference game at Stephens Arena in the Junell Center.

The Rams (3-9, 1-5 LSC) lead by as many as 13 and led 31-24 at halftime but were unable to keep pace with the conference-leading Mustangs (10-3, 6-0 LSC) in the second half. ASU, which was outrebounded 55-23 in the game, dropped its fifth straight game and to 3-2 at home this season.

“We had a chance to win the game, but we gave them too many shots,” ASU head coach Fred Rike said. “We have to rebound the ball. We got short-handed because of foul trouble and injury. We have to pick our head up and toughen up.”

Antonio Dye led the Rams with 13 points and three assists, while Justin Walling hit three 3-pointers and finished the game with 11 points before fouling out late in the second half. Bryan Hammond added nine points and Dakota Rawls had eight. Ryan Marsh led the Rams in rebounding with five, including four on the offensive side of the court.

While Walling went 3 of 4 on 3-pointers, the Rams struggled beyond the arc by shooting 5 of 25 (20 percent). MSU also was cold on 3-pointers, shooting 3 of 13 (23.1 percent). The Rams finished the game shooting 33.3 percent from the field with the Mustangs shooting 41.2 percent. MSU also had a 20-14 advantage in free throws made.

The Rams forced 25 turnovers in the game and limited their turnovers to 15 but couldn't overcome the rebounding margin. Corbin Thomas led the Mustangs with 14 rebounds and 10 rebounds, while Kevin Grayer had 10 points and eight rebounds. Cam Adderley contributed 13 points and six rebounds.

“They are one of the best rebounding teams in the country,” Rike said. “But we have to toughen up and grab rebounds. It's unacceptable and we have to play tougher.”

Angelo State's bench outscored the Mustangs 26-22, with Dye and Walling both coming in as subs on Saturday. The Rams, which opened the game on a four-point run and had a 31-18 lead with 2:10 remaining in the first half, also had a 19-14 advantage in points off turnovers. The Mustangs closed the first half on a 6-0 run to go into halftime trailing 31-24. Click for game play-by-play.

The Rams return to action at 7 p.m. on Tuesday against Texas-Permian Basin at the Junell Center. ASU fell 79-67 on Dec. 19 to the Falcons in Odessa.