Under new regime, Head Coach Mike DeGeorge, the Lynx opened the season at home against Howard Payne University (TX) on Monday, November 15th. The lynx jumped out to a fast start, taking a 35-33 lead into halftime. Andrew Galow was the first half catalyst leading the lynx with 13 points and 3 assists in the half. Coming out strong in the second half, the Lynx pushed their lead to eight early, but Howard Payne fought back. The lynx found themselves in a dog fight. The score remained within four points for the remainder of the game. Down two with 17 seconds left, freshman Johnny Dunavant knocked down a three point field goal from the corner to give the lynx a late lead. In the remaining seconds, Howard Payne's pre-season player of the year Brandon Irwin, made 3 of 4 free throws to take a 81-79. A last second half court shot by Joey Miller hit the back of the rim to give Howard Payne their first victory of the season. Sophomores, Andy Galow and Joey Miller, and senior Josh Arant paced the Lynx offense. Galow tallied 24 points, sinking 15 of 16 free-throws, Miller scored 13 points, and Arant added 11 points and grabbed 7 rebounds. Freshmen Johnny Dunavant and Patrick McGrail made their first collegiate start memorable scoring 12 and 8 points respectively. Howard Payne was lead by junior Brandon Irwin with a career high 39 points. Head Coach Mike DeGeorge says, “I was proud of our effort, but our level of execution needs to improve dramatically in order to have consistent success. We gave up a combined 50 points in transition and second chance points. We have to develop the habit of taking pride in every defensive possession and finishing them. The group has showed tremendous improvement since the beginning of practice and we are excited about how much better we can become.” The lynx next game is this weekend in Greenville, Illinois against Westminster College and Greenville College.