ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – The University of South Carolina Aiken men's basketball team lost a 91-80 decision to No. 7 West Texas A&M Saturday afternoon.

The Pacers are now 0-2 on the year.

Faison Brock led the way with a team-high 22 points to go along with five rebounds. Xzavier Barmore tallied 15 points and a game-high six thefts. Dhieu Deing chipped in 13 points while Tracus Chisholm added nine markers.

Deing's rebound and put-back 4:07 into the game gave the visitors an 8-5 lead. Tied at 10-10, Robert Hill made an inside shot. After Brock grabbed the rebound, he calmly drained a three-ball at the 14:01 mark for a five-point edge.

USC Aiken would push the margin to six after a steal from Barmore. Deing connected on a lay-up for a 20-14 advantage. Leading 28-25, Damontez Oliver took a pass from Shaquan Jules and buried a shot from distance for a 31-25 lead. However, the home squad went on a 13-4 run to end the half.

Trailing by 16 in the second half, head coach Mark Vanderslice's team managed to cut the deficit to six after Deing made a pair of free throws with 7:52 to play. It was the closest the Pacers would get the rest of the way.  

For the game, USC Aiken hit 33-of-74 from the floor (44.6 percent), but managed to connect on four-of-26 from downtown (15.4 percent). Vanderslice's team held a 56-40 edge in the paint.

The Pacers return to action Friday when they play Tusculum in the Region Challenge in Harrogate, Tenn. The game is slated to start at 5 p.m.