FULTON, Mo. - The men's basketball team competed at Westminster on Monday afternoon and came up short by a 136-125 final score.

Greenville held the early edge in the game, recording a 40-30 lead on a three-pointer by Rakim Murphy with 9:47 to play in the first half.

Westminster ran off a 22-9 run to go on top 52-49, but the Panthers managed to rattle off an 18-1 scoring spree to go back on top 66-53.

The Panthers settled for a 76-70 advantage at halftime.

In the second half, the score became knotted at 97-all with 11:32 to play, and the deficit for each team remained under five for the next five minutes.  Westminster eventually held a 115-111 lead with six and a half minutes to go.  The Blue Jays ended up outscoring Greenville 21-14 over the remainder of the game.

Greenville's pressure in the backcourt did not result in as many turnovers as usual.  Westminster stayed under 30 giveaways with 26, and the Panthers had just 17 steals.

Johari Dix had a full line for Greenville with 23 points, five assists, and three steals to lead or tie for the team lead in all three categories.

Eric Williams posted 18 points, and Murphy helped with 17 points.  Barry Nixon had 11 points and matched Dix with five assists.

Swade Edwards provided 12 points, and Marvin Bateman totaled 11 points.

The Panthers (10-6, 7-2 SLIAC) will return the hardwood with a game on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. at home in H.J. Long Gymnasium.