Looking for their first conference win, the Mustangs were looking for the answer as Texas A&M – Kingsville entered Drag's Court Thursday night.

Within the first two minutes, the Javelinas would go 3-for-3 from beyond the arc before Willie McCray (Clovis, NM/Clovis/Westwind Prep Academy) broke a 9-0 run. The Mustangs had to find a way around the big Kingsville defense.

A turnover by Western appeared to give Kingsville an open lane, but from the other end Amarion Cash (Phoenix, AZ/Mountain Pointe) came through with a big block bringing the ball back the other way. Alejandro Gonzalez (Madrid, Spain/Jorge Manrique) waiting on the other end connected from the corner, bringing the Mustang bench to their feet. Gonzalez would come up big again grabbing an offensive rebound and converting on the and-one.

Trailing 17-23 with just under eight minutes left to play, Davis Wade (Jackson, MS/Will C Wood) would draw the foul from deep, connecting on all three of his free throws. Leston Gordon (Tunapuna, Trinidad and Tobago/Tunapuna Government Secondary) would draw a foul of his own, converting on the and-one to tie the game. A jumper by Davis Wade (Jackson, MS/Will C Wood) gave the Mustangs their first lead of the game at 25-23.

Fouls in favor of the visiting team gave way to an 8-0 run. Trailing by 10 with under a minute left, Kingsville would run the clock going into the half ahead 42-32.

Leston Gordon (Tunapuna, Trinidad and Tobago/Tunapuna Government Secondary) got things going for the Mustangs in the second half, with a clear lane and an open hoop leading to a slam dunk. From beyond the arc Jordan Enriquez (El Paso, TX/Bel Air) would cut the Javelina lead to four.

From one end to the other Kingsville's offense was quick. On the opposite end they put the pressure on defense but so did the Mustangs causing a shot clock violation. CJ Vanbeekum (Phoenix, AZ/Paradise) found Gordon in the paint to cut into the lead.

Down by seven with seven minutes left to play, Western looked to Gordon in the paint.

Amarion Cash (Phoenix, AZ/Mountain Pointe) from the corner cut into the 11-point deficit and the Mustang trailing 58-66 with two and a half minutes left to play.

One last shot attempt was no good as time ran out and Western fell 70-61.

Shooting 36.5 percent from the field as a team, Leston Gordon (Tunapuna, Trinidad and Tobago/Tunapuna Government Secondary) led the way with 16 points going 6-10 from the floor and 4-7 from the foul line. Davis Wade (Jackson, MS/Will C Wood) also finished with 16 points, going 3-4 from the perimeter and a flawless 5-5 from the line.

The Mustangs are back at it again on Saturday as they face off against Angelo State, 4 p.m. on Drag's Court.