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INDIANAPOLIS - After winning their last four home games, the Jaguar win streak was snapped on Saturday afternoon (Feb. 10) as they fell to Youngstown State, 84-80. Cameron Morse led the hot shooting Penguins with 28 points, including four treys, and Garrett Covington added 14. 

Junior T.J. Henderson led three Jags in double-digits with a career-high 22 points off the bench and Ron Patterson scored 15 of his 17 points before halftime. 

The loss drops the Jaguars' record to 8-17 (5-9 Horizon), while Youngstown State improved to 7-20 (5-9 Horizon).

The game opened up with players exchanging buckets on both sides. Patterson Covington each scored the first eight points for their respective teams, connecting on two trifectas apiece. Youngstown State would end up taking the lead shortly after and wouldn't relinquish it for the rest of the day.
 
The Jaguars struggled to string together defensive stops with scores on the other end. A jumper by Aaron Brennan late in the first half cut the Penguin lead to three, but YSU countered with a 9-0 run to stretch the lead to 38-26. The Penguins would take a double-digit lead into the locker room at 47-37.
 
"It's just energy. We have to come out ready to play every time, and that's as a collective unit," Henderson said afterwards.
 
In the first half, the guests connected on over 50 percent of their shots, including 6-of-11 from distance. IUPUI couldn't find that same rhythm, shooting just 11-of-30 from the floor and 4-of-11 from behind the arc in the first half. 

"We have to be more locked in and focused on what we need to do to get a win," freshman Jaylen Minnett said postgame. "We have to find a way to fix our lapses when we don't have energy."
 
The second half started in similar fashion as the Penguins connected multiple times from three-point range to push the lead to 57-42. The Jags got post buckets from Brennan and Evan Hall, but Morse kept knocking down tough shots to keep the Penguins up double digits.
 
"It's a team effort defending a guy like that. We have to make every shot he takes tough and he's going to make some of them, but each shot has to be challenged," Henderson said of Morse.
 
The Jaguars' offense found a spark in Henderson as he scored five consecutive points to cut the Penguin lead to 66-56. In similar fashion to the first half, the Jaguars couldn't string together much of a run. Youngstown State answered yet again, and took a 75-61 lead into the final five minutes. IUPUI wouldn't go away, however, and an 8-0 run spurred by a pair of threes by Minnett cut the lead to 75-69 with just under four minutes to play.
 
"We always find a way to find a way to fight back, but if we find a way to eliminate getting down big, that's when we'll start to win," Minnett said.
 
Youngstown State countered by getting a second chance basket to go back up eight, Aaron Brennan answered with a pair of free throws to cut the lead back to six. The teams exchanged baskets on the ensuing possessions to make it 79-73 with two minutes to play. TJ Henderson sunk a pair of free throws following a stop by the Jaguar defense to get it down to four.
 
Coming out of a timeout, a Penguin turnover followed by a Brennan score cut the lead to two with a minute to play. On Youngstown State's next possession, Morse was fouled on a three as the shot clock was winding down and knocked in all three free throws. Henderson answered for the Jags with an and-1 of his own to make it 82-80 with 29 seconds remaining. However, the Penguins quickly broke the Jaguars' full-court press and got a wide open dunk to make it a two-possession game. The Jaguars couldn't convert on their next possession as the comeback rally fell short.
 
"We dig ourselves to big of a hole. We keep fighting and fighting, but basketball is a game of runs and today we just got into too big of a hole," Henderson said.
 
Brennan finished with 16 points and four boards while Minnett tallied nine off the bench. IUPUI finished at 46.4 percent and 40 percent from deep. 
 
Morse scored 16 of his game-high 28 after halftime. Covington, Jaylen Benton (12 points) and Tyree Robinson (11 points) also joined him in double-digits. The Penguins were able to take advantage of the Jaguars' 15 turnovers with a 19-13 advantage in points off turnovers.
 
"We all have to be locked in every night and be ready to guard and defend and help each other out every single game," Minnett said. "We all have to be on the same page and focused on one goal, which is winning." 

IUPUI will hit the road for one final time during the regular season next Friday night (Feb. 16) when the Jaguars face Milwaukee at 8:00 p.m. Eastern at UWM Panther Arena. That game will be aired on ESPN3 and can be heard in Central Indiana on Fox Sports 97.5 FM and the iHeartRadio app as Morgan Adcock (pxp) is on the call. IUPUI won the earlier meeting between the two schools on Hall's layup at the final buzzer.