Men's Basketball faced off with Hardin-Simmons on Wednesday night at the Jerabeck Activity and Athletics Center. In a tightly contested matchup, the Celts were able to pull ahead late and hang on for a 73-71 victory to move to 2-1 on the season.

Both teams traded baskets early, but Hardin-Simmons produced the first major run of the night to open up a nine-point lead. The Celts struggled to find consistency in the opening half; they made a few runs to get close, including a 10-2 spurt led by Luke Ramirez and Charles Gitonga, but the Cowboys were able to pull away each time and led at the break, 43-36. 

St. Thomas finally started to make some headway in the opening stages of the second half. Calvin Williams IV and Angel Johnson scored key baskets in an 8-2 run to cut the Cowboys' lead to 3. Nick Anderson then took over, putting in a trio of threes to match Hardin-Simmons' scoring and give St. Thomas a late 70-67 lead that the Celts wouldn't relinquish. Williams put in a layup and Ramirez converted a key free throw, and UST secured a defensive stop as time expired to hold on for the win.

Williams led all scorers in the game with 23 points on 9-for-21 shooting (3-for-5 from three), and Calen Anderson chipped in an all-around performance with 10 points, five rebounds, two steals and two blocks.

St. Thomas is back in action Saturday afternoon at the JAAC as they meet UTD at 1:00. Follow ustcelts.com for scores and updates.