The SMU men’s basketball team (1-2, 7-6) hosted the HawaiiRainbow Warriors (2-1, 10-3) in a Western Athletic Conference gameThursday night.

The game kept fans gasping for air right down to the buzzer.Bryan Hopkins’ three-quarter shot fell short and so did theMustangs, 65-66.

In the 40-minute game, SMU out-battled Hawaii in the second half31-22. But it was not enough to overcome a first half of stagnateoffense, turnovers and missed rebounds off the offensive glass.

The 44-34 score at halftime came after a less than desirabletransition defense.

With 10 minutes left in the game, the Mustangs put on a valianteffort at a comeback.

But SMU’s inability to play defense for the rest of thegame put out the glimmer of hope with 16.8 seconds left.

“I was really pulling for them. The first half was rough,but it was exciting to see them come back in the secondhalf,” junior Matthew Bragman said.

“We waited too long to make our shots,” Dement said.”We scrambled a little and used too much energy comingback.”

In preparation for Saturday’s game against San Jose State,Dement said the focus needed to be on making free throws, lay-upsand getting the crucial offensive rebound.

“We need more fight even though things aren’t goingwell,” Dement said.

All is not lost for the Mustangs. In the players’ pressconference, the players focused on their second chances.

“It’s a 40-minute game and we came out and playedwell the second half,” Hopkins said.

The Mustangs will have another chance on Saturday night againstthe San Jose Spartans at Moody Coliseum at 8 p.m.