Palmer scores 26 as Texas A&M-Corpus Christi holds out against Texas-Arlington 82-79

Texas A&M-Corpus Christi holds on in 82-79 win

CORPUS CRISTI, Texas — Kevin Palmer scored a game-high 26 points to lift Texas A&M-Corpus Christi to an 82-79 victory over Texas-Arlington on Saturday night in the final game of the regular season for both teams.

The Islanders (16-14, 10-6 Southland) were up by 12 points early in the second half.

But Texas-Arlington (16-13. 8-8) chipped away to pull within a point, 79-80, with six seconds left on a 3-pointer by LaMarcus Reed III.

Palmer, however, then made a pair of free throws with three seconds left to clinch the win.

Demond Watt added 24 points for the Islanders, while Horace Bond had 11 points and Shamar Coombs had 10.

Marquez Haynes led the Mavericks with 17 points. Brandon Long added 15 points and Jordan Reves had 10.

With the win, the Islanders clinched the No. 3 seed in the Southland Conference tournament, which begins next week. The Mavericks will enter at No. 7.