ST. LOUIS – The University of Missouri-St. Louis men's basketball team had its two-game winning streak snapped by a hot shooting Central Missouri squad in a 71-46 loss on Monday evening in the High Desert Classic at Desert Oasis High School in Las Vegas, Nev. The Tritons drop to 5-6 while the Mules move to 5-4.

UMSL got off to a slow start missing six of their first seven shots as UCM jumped out to an early nine-point lead. The Tritons pulled to within 28-21 with 4:39 left in the first half after a layup from Savon Wykle but that would be as close as they would get as the Mules finished the half on a 13-3 run to take 17-point lead into the locker room at halftime.

Central Missouri shot 53 percent (16-for-30) from the floor in the opening stanza including 8-of-16 from three while UMSL was held to 42 percent (10-for-24) shooting from the field in the half but was 1-of-5 from beyond the arc.

The Mules opened the second half on a 10-3 run to extend its lead to 24 three minutes into the frame. The Tritons battled back to within 17 but were unable to get any closer as UCM led by as many as 27 points in the contest.

UMSL was held to 40 percent (18-for-45) shooting from the floor in the contest including 4-of-13 from three. It turned the ball over 17 times in the contest resulting in 23 points off turnovers for the Mules. Troy Glover II led the way for the Tritons with 11 points, nine rebounds and seven blocked shots. Emanuel Prospere II added nine points while Wykle and Mayson Quartlebaum finished with eight points each.

UCM finished the game shooting 43.5 percent (27-for-62) from the field and was 12-for-28 from three. The Mules outrebounded the Tritons 38-to-29 and had an 18-4 advantage in second chance points. Caleb Nero led all scorers with 23 points while Jalen Knott added 16 points.

UMSL plays its final game before the Christmas break on Tuesday against seventh ranked Central Oklahoma at 6 p.m. (CST) in the High Desert Classic. The Bronchos defeated Henderson State 86-72 in overtime on Monday afternoon.