HAMMOND, La.  –   Joe Kasperzyk scored a career-high 25 points and five players scored in double figures for the Southeastern Louisiana men's basketball team but it wasn't enough as they fell, 95-91, to McNeese Wednesday night at the University Center.
 
The Lions (7-14, 5-7 Southland) were led by Kasperzyk who shot 8-for-11 from the field, including 3-for-5 from the free throw line. Sophomore Nick Caldwell had another solid game scoring 17 points, grabbing eight rebounds and had two steals. Gus Okafor, Keon Clergeot, who missed Monday's game with an ankle injury, and Isiah Kirby had 15, 14 and 12 respectively.
 
The Cowboys (9-11, 3-8 Southland) were paced by senior Keyshawn Feazell with his eighth double-double of the season scoring 22 points and snatching 11 rebounds. Carlos Rosario added 19 points on 7-for-11 shooting. Dru Kuxhausen and Harwin Francois each scored 14 while A.J. Lawson chipped in with 10.
 
McNeese opened the game on 11-3 run before SLU rallied to tie the game at 18-18 midway through the first half. The Cowboys, however, took control of the game late in the first half as they built a 45-34 lead at halftime highlighted by six first half three-pointers.
 
In the second half, the Cowboys pushed their lead to as much as 14, 80-66, with 6:57 to go. The Lions didn't go away quietly as they stormed on a 12-0 run over the next 3:56. cutting the McNeese lead to 80-78 with 3:01 to play.
 
The game was still up for grabs with 1:25 remaining as McNeese held a slim, 85-83 advantage. The Cowboys scored six unanswered points in the next 55 seconds including four made free throws to hold off the Lions' rally.
SLU finished the game 30-for-59 (50.8 percent) from the field while McNeese was 31-for-61 (50 percent). Southeastern converted 20 out of 25 free throws while the Cowboys were 24-for-26 from the charity stripe. The Lions made 11 of 26 from long range and McNeese drilled 9 out of 23. Each team scored 38 points in the paint
 
Next up, Southeastern will travel to Natchitoches, Louisiana to face Northwestern State (8-15, 7-5 Southland) Saturday afternoon at 3 p.m. in Prather Coliseum.
 
HARDWOOD CLUB/S CLUB
Fans interested in becoming active supporters of the basketball program are encouraged to join the Hardwood Club.  Lion alums are encouraged to join the exclusive S Club, which is restricted to Southeastern athletic letterwinners.  All membership fees and donations to Hardwood Club are available for the exclusive use of the Southeastern basketball program. Membership information is available by contacting the Lion Athletics Association at laa@southeastern.edu or (985) 549-5091 or visiting www.LionUp.com.
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on Southeastern Basketball, follow @LionUpMBB and @DavidKieferSLU on Twitter, like /SLUathletics on Facebook and subscribe to the SLUathletics YouTube channel.
 
TICKETS
For ticket information, please contact the Southeastern Athletics Ticket Office at (985) 549-5466 or visit www.LionSports.net/tickets. Southeastern is implementing mobile ticketing as the primary source for securing tickets for the 2020-21 season. All tickets will be available via e-mail in a PDF format for fans to download on their phone or print at home. Tickets can also be downloaded to Apple Wallet.