KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The University of Saint Mary men's basketball team fought hard, but fell 65-60 to Avila University Saturday in their final game of the season. They finished 10th in conference standings.

The Spires finished the season 12-16 overall and 8-16 in the KCAC

A triple from Cameron Southern in the opening seconds gave Saint Mary a 3-0 lead, but Avila would quickly take the lead and lead by as many as nine midway through the half. After a timeout, Dallas Taylor laid up a two-pointer to give the Spires some momentum. Moments later, Raylon Howard fed Brad Hailey inside for a bucket and the foul to make it a four point game. Howard then scored to make it a 25-23 ball game with 4:13 left in the half. A pair off free-throws gave Saint Mary a 27-26 lead for the first time since the opening seconds. The Spires held a one point lead at halftime.

It was a back and forth battle throughout the entire second half. The Eagles tried to pull away as they led 45-54 with 6:14 left, but the Spires would not fold. Howard knocked down four free-throws to put them within six. Despite the great effort, the Spires would not be able to complete the comeback.

Taylor led the team in scoring with 15 points, while Howard finished with 13 respectfully. Hailey just missed a double-double as he finished with nine points and a team high 10 rebounds.