ALLEN, Texas –  While it didn't happen right away, the No. 1 seed MSU Mustangs finally pulled away from eighth-seeded Texas A&M-Commerce in the second half and advanced to the semifinals of the LSC Championships with a 92-84 win over the Lions.
 
The biggest reason for the Mustangs' second-half surge was simple: Kevin Grayer.
 
The senior guard might have been a second-team All-LSC selection, but he was all-world for the Mustangs Wednesday night. Grayer poured in a career-high 33 points on 11 of 16 shooting. Grayer was also 8 of 9 from the free-throw line. And if he wasn't scoring, Grayer was coming up with loose rebounds, getting key steals or even blocking a key 3-point attempt as the Lions were trying to get back in the game. The emphatic capper occurred in the final seconds when Grayer made a steal in the open and slammed through a one-handed jam for the final points of the game.
 
But Grayer wasn't the only star for the Mustangs, who also got a career-high performance from Derek Kaster, who scored 18 points and had six rebounds.
 
The Mustangs also had 14 points off the bench by Keith Spellman. Chris Buttermore scored nine, including some big shots in the first-half to halt two different runs by Commerce.
 
In the second half, MSU shot 69 percent from the field (20 of 29) and finished the game 58.3 percent and 7 of 14 from 3-point land.
 
The Lions were led by a strong outing from Andrew Davis, who had 18 points and 12 rebounds. Preston Whitley led his team with 19 points, while Stefon Carson and Devondrick Walker each scored 13.
 
The Lions' season ends with a 14-15 record, while MSU advances to Friday night's semifinal game against the winner of Incarnate Word/Texas A&M-Kingsville in Thursday's 4-5 game. The victory improves MSU to 20-7 overall this year and gives the Mustangs their fourth straight 20-win season and the fifth in the past six years.
 
This also marked the third straight year the Mustangs defeated A&M-Commerce in the LSC Championship quarterfinal round. The Lions gave MSU its first LSC loss back in early January but the Mustangs returned the favor with an 18-point win on Feb. 20.
 
But this rubber match Wednesday night was quite a battle early on as the Lions and Mustangs traded the lead several times in the first half. Commerce led 41-38 until MSU finished the first half with a 7-0 run. And then in the second half, MSU used another 7-0 run, which included five points from Grayer.
 
MSU eventually pushed the lead to 18 but Commerce trimmed it to 11 before another turning point occurred. Carson had an open lane to the basket but missed a dunk attempt, resulting in the Mustangs' possession. Quickly the other way, Grayer buried a 3-pointer to move the lead back to 14.
 
The Mustangs led by as much as 20 but a few late 3-pointers for Commerce, along with some missed free throws by MSU, gave the Lions a chance to cut into the final score.