ABILENE — Abilene Christian used a late surge to pull away for an 86-72 victory over the Sam Houston men's basketball team at the Teague Center Wednesday evening.
 
The Bearkats (17-7, 11-2 in SLC) used a 9-4 run to get as close as three points in the final minutes. Junior Zach Nutall hit a 3-pointer and a pair of jumpers, and senior Demarkus Lampley knocked down a shot to cut the deficit to 75-72 with two minutes to go in the game.
 
The Wildcats (19-3, 11-1) closed the contest with an 11-0 run to split the season series with Sam Houston.
 
Nutall scored a game-high 33 points, and junior Tristan Ikpe scored 11. Lampley finished with 10 points as the Bearkats shot 48 percent from the field.
 
One of the big differences in the game came from behind the arc. Sam Houston shot just 25 percent from 3-point range (5 for 20), while ACU shot a blistering 53 percent (10 for 19).
 
The Bearkats return to action Monday when they travel to Houston Baptist. Tipoff time has yet to be determined.