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ALPINE, Texas- Rocky Feliciano (El Paso/Hanks) posted a second season best 26 points to lead Sul Ross to a 78-69 conference victory over visiting Howard Payne Saturday.

The Lobos and Hardin-Simmons (12-7, 7-3 ASC) are now tied for first place in the ASC West following the Cowboys' 83-76 conference win over Concordia in Abilene.

Caleb Thomasson (Ackerly/Sands) and Xavier Webb (Riverton, WY, RHS) recorded 15 and 14 points on the day.

Sul Ross shot 23 of 54 from the field against HPU at 43 percent.

The Yellow Jackets shot a frigid four of 16 from the free throw line in the first half to finish at 11 of 29 or 38 percent for the game.

Following a 6-6 tie at the 13:58 mark first half, Howard Payne's Shadd Cole converted from long range to put the Jackets ahead, 9-3.

A jump shot in the paint by Thomasson at 12:27 gave Sul Ross a slim 10-9 advantage before a three-pointer by Alex Harrison (Lubbock/Monterey) pushed the Lobo lead to four, 13-9 at 11:52.

A three-point jumper by Damien Rhodriquez (San Antonio/John Jay) coupled with a Harrison free throw extended the Sul Ross lead to six, 18-12 with 9:52 remaining in the half.

Webb then sank a long range shot at 8:15 to give the home team Lobos their largest lead thus far, up 21-13.

Three possessions later Feliciano ripped the net from long distance to give SRSU an 11-point 24-13 advantage with 6:15 left before the break.

The Yellow Jackets cut their deficit down to three off a layup by Cole at 1:02 and Sul Ross up 28-25.

A layup by Feliciano at 21 seconds followed by another layup by HPU's Rickey Guillory at 10 seconds would wind up the opening period with Sul Ross sporting a 33-27 lead.

Kyce Randall's three-pointer at one minute and four seconds into the second half pulled Howard Payne to within a point, trailing 33-29.

The Lobos pounced on back-to-back three-pointers by Webb and Jacob Caloss (Poth/PHS) to give Sul Ross a seven-point 39-32 cushion at 18:25.

Sully then attacked with an 8-0 run ending on a foul shot by Caloss at 16:35 which gave the Lobos a 47-35 favor.

A Thomasson free throw and two charity shots by Feliciano gave Sul Ross its largest lead of the game, a 13-point, 56-43 advantage with 9:54 left in the contest.

The Yellow Jackets fought their way down to a five-point deficit off a bucket and free throw by Guillory at the 5:00 mark.

A 5-0 HPU run cut the Lobo lead down to a deuce, 65-63, as Randall banked on a field goal from the paint at 1:54.

Sul Ross reacted with an 8-0 attack ending on two free throws by Feliciano at 37 seconds and Sully ahead, 73-63.

The El Paso senior nailed the lid in the closing seconds of play with two more foul shots as Sully walked away with the 78-69 victory.

Feliciano finished the day at 9-10 from the free throw line and maintains his ranking in the league as the ASC's top free throw shooter at 80 of 89.

With the win the Lobos bump their season mark to 11-8 including a 7-3 post in the ASC. Howard Payne drops to 8-12 and 4-6.

Sul Ross will face the Cowboys in a crucial Thursday nightcap to determine who takes the top slot in the Conference West Division.

Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 from Abilene.