ST. LOUIS, Mo. -- The UMSL Tritons (11-4, 5-3) used a strong final 10 minutes of play to put stress upon the visiting Bulldogs of Truman State but the Tritons came up short in the end, 79-72, Thursday evening at Chuck Smith Court.

In the opening half, it was all Bulldogs as they jumped out to multiple double-digit leads, ending the first half up 15 points, 38-23.

But in the second, timely shooting and dribble penetration from Yaakema Rose complemented the sharp shooting of Jose Grubbs and Trever Moore to give the Tritons life.

The Tritons closed the gap, thanks in part to a stingy defense from the interior as well as its guard play. Head coach Bob Sundvold called for the press with approximately eight minutes remaining, and the Tritons came up with vital steals to cut into the deficit.

With 3:39 remaining, Moore hit two 3-pointers and the Tritons were right back in the thick of it as they trailed 68-57.

The Bulldogs, though, hit their shots from the charity stripe as they closed out the game to sweep the regular-season series.

UMSL is at home Saturday as they tip at 3 p.m. against Quincy.