Leslie's Career-High 34 Powers SE Past HSU

DURANT, Okla. – Kyle Leslie exploded for a career-high 34 points to lead Southeastern to a commanding 99-73 win over Henderson State on Saturday afternoon in Bloomer Sullivan Arena.
 
The win lifts the Savage Storm to 12-6 overall on the year and 9-4 in Great American Conference play.
 
Leslie came out firing on all cylinders, hitting 12-of-20 overall form the field, including an 8-of-15 performance from beyond the arc on his way to 34 points which led all scorers on the night.
 
He nearly converted a double double as he added nine rebounds in the effort and dished out a pair of assists with one blocked shot.
 
Jett Sternberger was next in line with 13 points for the game with a pair of threes, while Aaron Jacob came off the bench with 10.
 
Brennen Burns, Kody Clouet, and Landon Condiff each finished just short of double-figures with eight apiece, while 12 players would score points on the night for SE.
 
The Stork shot 53.0 percent overall form the field on the day, including a 48.6 percent effort from beyond the arc, draining 18 threes.
 
HSU scored first and the teams played a back-and-0forth game from the tip in the first half, closing to an 8-8 tie at the 15:35 mark.
 
Consecutive threes form Condiff, Leslie, and Sternbegrer would push the Southeastern advantage quickly out to nine points by the 13-minute mark, but the Reddies would chip away, closing the gap to one point on three-straight possessions with just under 10 to play in the half.
 
SE would end the threat and slowly push its lead out, hitting double-figures on a Weeks jumper with 3:53 to play in the first half at 36-26.
 
The Storm lead would peak at 10 points at that point before HSU used a pair of late free throws to cut the SE lead to 45-37 at halftime.
 
The Reddies chipped the gap to six points early in the second half, but a 6-0 run would push the Storm lead back to double figures by the 17:49 mark.
 
The advantage would hover between 10 and 14 points until HSU trimmed the Southeastern edge to just seven points at 67-60 with 10:43 to play.
 
Leslie would answer with a three at the 9:33 mark, triggering a 27-7 run over the next seven-and-a-half minutes to expand the lead to 94-67 after a Jalen Williams jumper, before ultimately setting the final score at 99-73.