Box Score
LAS CRUCES, N.M. – Tyrone Watson scored 20 of his game-high 24 points in the first half and New Mexico State closed out the first half with a 23-8 run over the final 7:51 of the first half en route to an 81-56 victory over Southeastern Louisiana late Thursday at the Pan American Center.
Sim Bhullar added 13 points on 6-of-9 shooting as NMSU (1-1) went 28-for-54 (51.9 percent) from the floor. The Aggies led 24-23 after Southeastern's
Roosevelt Johnson scored on a layup with 8:13 remaining in the first half before NMSU went on a 10-0 run, capped by a 3-pointer by Kevin Aronis at the 5:30 mark.
Southeastern (0-3), which was playing its third game in a five-day period against teams that reached the NCAA Championships, closed to within 61-52 on a bucket by Johnson with 9:10 remaining, but NMSU closed out the game with a 20-4 run.
Brandon Fortenberry scored a season-high 21 points to lead Southeastern while Johnson added a season-high 12.
Jan Petrovcic grabbed a team-high eight rebounds for the Lions with Johnson grabbing six.
The Lions were held to 23-for-63 aim (36.5 percent) from the floor and 5-for-21 (23.8 percent) from behind the 3-point line.
Southeastern will return to action on Tuesday when it opens its home schedule against Louisiana College as part of a doubleheader. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:15 p.m.
