SAN ANTONIO - Midwestern State stole one from the Langston (Okla.) Lions in the River City Classic opener Friday afternoon at Bill Greehey Arena.

The Mustangs did come from behind to erase an early seven-point advantage, but led comfortably throughout the second half to cruise to a 74-56 win to improve to 5-0 on the season.

But oh how Midwestern depended on the cat-quick hands of senior guard Jason Ebie, who set a school record with 12 steals and fell two assists shy of the program's third triple-double.

The transfer from TCU pitched in 10 points and added eight helpers as the Mustangs flustered Langston into 35 turnovers which led to a 39-10 advantage in points of miscues.

The tenacious defensive effort allowed MSU to overcome a 34.1-percent shooting night.

"Pretty would not be an adjective to describe this game on the offensive end," MSU coach Grant McCasland said. "We had too many selfish plays and too many guys trying to do it on their own. I am proud they finished strong and found a way to win."

Langston ran out to a 9-2 lead before the Mustangs peeled of a 10-2 run to take their first lead of the game on a 3-pointer by Chris Hagan to up 12-11 with 13:45 remaining in the first half.

The Lions regained the lead and pushed it back out to 26-20 when Alvin Lewis buried one of his two treys for the game with 8:06.

"We kinda got lulled to sleep after the start of the game," McCasland said. "They have some good guards who will spread you out. They like to take you one-on-one a lot."

Lewis, who finished with 12 points, joined senior Catrell Curry to give the Lions formidable one-two punch at the guard position. Curry canned five 3-pointers to finish with a game-high 17 points.

But that would be the last Langston would threaten as the Mustangs scored the final 14 points of the first half and led 34-26 after Michael Godwin knocked down a trey off of Ebie's third steal of the game with 1:45 to go until intermission.

Ironically, those were the only points MSU scored off of Ebie's four first-half steals. That would change after halftime.

"He (Ebie) struggled in the first half and found another gear in the second," McCasland said. "He plays so hard and has the will to win."

The Mustangs scored on seven of his eight second-half thefts which netted a total of 15 points and allowed MSU to lead by as many as 22 points in the final stanza.

Hagan, a junior transfer from Rice via Blinn College, went 5-for-12 from the field including three 3-pointers to lead Midwestern with 14 points.

Godwin dropped in 11 points and pulled in five rebounds off of the bench, while senior forward Rashad Austin narrowly missed his first double-double of the season with nine points and nine rebounds in 23 minutes of play.

Senior guard Anthony Moore pitched in eight points and led the Mustangs with 11 rebounds.

MSU, which is off to its best start since the 2003-04 team also opened with five-straight victories, battles host St. Mary's (Texas) Saturday night at 7:30 p.m.

The Mustangs defeated the Rattlers 83-72 back on Nov. 18 at D.L. Ligon Coliseum.

Notables
* The Mustangs forced Langston into 35 turnovers which are the most since Ambassador (Texas) committed 37 against MSU on Dec. 5, 1996. Midwestern forced Jarvis Christian (Texas) into 40 turnovers on Feb. 12, 1992 which stands as the school record for forced miscues in a single game.
* Senior guard Jason Ebie's 12 steals are the most in a single game for an MSU player. Former standout guard Lance Harper had nine thefts three times during the 1991 season. The Lone Star Conference is held by Abilene Christian's Broderick Bobb, who had 15 against Western New Mexico in 1997.
* Ebie narrowly missed a triple-double with 10 points, eight assists and 12 steals. It would have been the third time an MSU player achieved the feat. Rodney Hinkle had 16 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists in a 93-83 win over Prairie View A&M on March 7, 1979, while Sam Daghlas had 10 points, 11 rebounds and 13 assists in an 86-80 win over Drury on Nov. 16, 2001.