GEORGETOWN, Texas â€" A game-winning jump shot with four seconds left from Southwestern's Blake Scott sent the Texas Lutheran men's basketball team home with a heartbreaking loss on Saturday.
 
The Bulldogs fell 70-68 to the Pirates inside the Corbin J. Robertson Center, dropping their record to 5-8 overall and 0-3 in SCAC competition. Southwestern improved to 4-9 on the year 1-2 in the SCAC.
 
Saturday was déjà vu for the Bulldogs, having already lost to the Pirates by two points earlier this season at home in a non-conference matchup. This time, the Bulldogs tied things up with a pair of Troy Griffith free throws with 1:14 left in the game. TLU got a crucial stop on the next possession, forcing a missed layup from Scott.
 
After a timeout by coach Tommy Jones, the Bulldogs had the ball with just 33 seconds to go, but Griffith was called for an offensive foul with 17 seconds left as the Bulldogs were forced to turn it back over to the Pirates. Scott did the rest, hitting the jump shot with four seconds remaining. The Bulldogs couldn't get a shot off to try and tie or win.
 
Texas Lutheran got a fantastic effort from Jordan Kouremetis (San Antonio, Texas) on Saturday. The freshman came off the bench and did everything he could to carry his squad to the win, scoring a career-high 23 points.  Kouremetis finished 5-of-14 from the field and 3-of-7 from three-point land. The key to his big day came in his work at the free throw line, where he sank all 10 of his attempts.
 
It wasn't just scoring where Kouremetis made an impact, either. He also chipped in with three rebounds, three steals and two assists on the day.
 
The Bulldogs also got 15 points from junior Garrett Wilkins (Austin, Texas) to go along with three assists and two steals. Wilkins shot 6-of-12 from the field and made three of his four free throws.
 
After struggling from the field yesterday against Trinity, the Bulldogs were much improved Saturday, shooting almost 39 percent from the field. While the Pirates shot a higher field goal percentage, TLU was able to stay in the game by getting to the free throw line and forcing turnovers. The Bulldogs knocked down 25 freebies and shot 78 percent from the line, while the Pirates made just 22 and shot 56 percent. The Bulldogs also forced 16 Southwestern turnovers.
 
The first half was tight throughout, with neither team able to build a lead larger than six points. That six point advantage was actually established very early on after Southwestern scored eight of the game's first 10 points to take an 8-2 lead.
 
The Bulldogs quickly answered that opening salvo by scoring eight straight points of their own to take lead. After that, the two teams traded leads seven more times in the half.
 
TLU looked like it may go into the locker room with a halftime lead after a Joshua Alderman free throw put the Bulldogs up 33-32 with 47 seconds left. The Pirates scored five quick points though, to take the lead back before a pair of Troy Griffith free throws cut the Bulldog to deficit 37-35 at the half.
 
The Bulldogs started the second half strong, opening with a 9-1 run and opening up their largest lead of the game just three and a half minutes into the second 20 minutes.
 
TLU continued to force the issue and a Kouremetis 3-pointer gave the Bulldogs a 56-47 lead, their largest in the game. At the point, Southwestern started to chip away, eventually evening the score at 58-58 with just over five minutes remaining. The lead would change seven times over the final five minutes before Scott's game-winning shot.
 
The Bulldogs are back in action at 6 p.m. next Friday, Jan. 17 when they play host to Dallas looking to snap this six-game losing streak. Live stats and video will be available via TLUBulldogs.com.