Wes Book says the good news is that there’s still time to turn things around.
The bad news is that the Emporia State men’s basketball team has put itself into an early hole — one the Hornets have to snap out of quickly if they hope to make a second consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
Hampered by poor shooting and uncharacteristic turnovers, No. 18 ESU continued its slide on Monday, falling 78-73 to Angelo State in the St. Mary’s River City Classic in San Antonio.
The Hornets (4-3) have now lost three straight.
“We’re frustrated, but last year we had a good start and ended bad,” Book said. “In basketball, if you start bad, you can end it good, so that’s the one positive thing right now.
“We’ve just got to get that one win to get us back on track.”
ESU struggled from a poor shooting night. The Hornets made just 26 of 76 shots (34.2 percent) and only 10 of 36 from three-point range (27.2 percent).
“Offensively, I don’t think we played all that bad. We just didn’t make shots,” Book said. “We were just getting look after look. We kept working it.
“I really do feel like we got good shots. They just didn’t go down.”
ESU committed 16 turnovers — many of which were unforced — and also had troubles getting to the free-throw line, shooting 18 freebies compared to Angelo State’s 38.
Just like its last game against Nebraska-Omaha, ESU grabbed an early lead before losing it late.
After a Jordan Fithian jumper, the Hornets held a 23-11 advantage with 8:26 remaining in the first half.
“If you set screens for other people, you find yourself open,” ESU guard Marvin Lee said. “That’s what was happening in that stretch.”
The offense went stale soon after.
ESU had just two field goals the rest of the half — and none in the final 5 minutes, 4 seconds — as Angelo State used a 17-3 run to take a 34-31 halftime lead.
The Rams (6-2) expanded their lead early in the second half, hitting five threes in the first 8 1/2 minutes to build their largest advantage at 57-44.
Angelo State led 70-58 with 1:47 remaining before ESU closed the gap with a frantic comeback.
DeAndre Townsend hit a pair of 3-pointers, and Fithian and Andrew Davison contributed long-range shots of their own to get the advantage down to 76-73 with 9 seconds left.
ASU’s Marcus Hubbard hit two free throws with 7 seconds left to seal it.
The game marked a return to the lineup for Book, who missed just one game after suffering an open dislocation of his right thumb.
The senior had his stitches removed Sunday night, then decided to play Monday after feeling OK after playing some 2-on-2 and 3-on-3.
Book had been shooting for a few days before that.
“Pretty much now, it’s just a jammed thumb,” Book said. “It’s going to hurt, but I’m just going to play with it.”
For the first game all season, ESU was not led in scoring by Book or Townsend.
The Hornets’ two leading scorers struggled from the floor, combining to make just 7 of 34 shots (20.6 percent).
Lee and Fithian paced ESU, as both posted double-doubles.
Fithian contributed 14 points to go along with a career-high 14 rebounds, while Lee had 14 points and 10 boards.
Lee had five offensive rebounds, and eight of his points came on putbacks.
“I know I’m capable of grabbing more rebounds than I have been,” Lee said. “Coach (David Moe) constantly tells me to crash the boards. That’s my mentality: Go hard and get as many rebounds as I can.”
Caleb Tegtmeier (13), Townsend (12) and Book (11) were the other Hornets in double figures.
ESU will have a quick turnaround, taking on Ouachita Baptist at 12:45 this afternoon in its final game of the Classic.
St. Mary’s River City Classic
Angelo State 78, Emporia State men 73
Monday at San Antonio, Texas
No. 18 ESU 31 42 — 73
Angelo State 34 44 — 78
EMPORIA STATE (4-3)
Jordan Fithian 5-7 3-3 14, Marvin Lee 7-13 0-0 14, Caleb Tegtmeier 4-10 3-6 13, DeAndre Townsend 3-15 4-7 12, Wes Book 4-19 3-10 11, Andrew Davison 1-7 0-0 3, Matt Boswell 1-4 1-2 3, Dustin Andrews 1-1 0-0 3, Spencer Allen 0-0 0-0 0, Jordan Stout 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 26-76 11-18 73.
ANGELO STATE (6-2)
Marcus Hubbard 8-23 4-12 26, Brice Nengsu 6-11 4-6 18, Derrick Webster 4-7 1-7 9, Nathan Walton 1-3 6-9 8, Denell Stephens 2-7 0-3 5, Roger Johnson 1-4 3-3 5, Jerod Haynes 0-3 4-4 4, Antwon Williams 0-1 2-2 2, Quinn Barfield 0-0 1-2 1. Totals 22-59 25-38 78.
3-point goals — Emporia State 10-36 (Book 3-10, Tegtmeier 2-5, Townsend 2-9, Fithian 1-1, Andrews 1-1, Davison 1-7, Boswell 0-1, Lee 0-2); Angelo State 9-25 (Nengsu 4-6, Hubbard 4-12, Stephens 1-2, Haynes 0-2, Johnson 0-3). Fouled out — Emporia State: Tegtmeier, Book, Fithian; Angelo State: None. Rebounds — Emporia State 53 (Fithian 14), Angelo State 41 (Hubbard 10). Assists — Emporia State 14 (Townsend 6), Angelo State 14 (Haynes 8). Total fouls — Emporia State 25, Angelo State 19. Att — 175.