TYLER, Tex. - Foul trouble and turnovers doomed the LSU Shreveport Pilots men's basketball team on Thursday afternoon as they lost their Red River Athletic Conference opener on the road 82-69 against the Texas College Steers.

LSUS (3-2, 0-1) Red River Athletic Conference) eventually saw three key players foul out of the ballgame on Thursday. Rodney Milum, Aaron Jones, and Isaac Reid all fouled out which is three of the five starters. Milum, the NAIA's leading scorer who came into the game tonight averaging 31.5 points per game, managed to only chip in 14 points tonight while Jones tossed in one less at 13. Reid chipped in six points and grabbed four rebounds. Mark Politte was the leading scorer with 15 to round out the double-digit scorers.

Texas College (6-1, 1-0 RRAC) did not play their best game but did what they had to do by converting on 24 of 34, 70-percent, free-throws while the Pilots struggled at the charity stripe making only 15 of 25, 60-percent.

Turnovers also crushed the Pilots hopes time and time again in the RRAC opener as they gave the ball away 26 times which equaled their foul count. TC only committed 14 turnovers.

The Pilots won the rebounding battle 41-38 as they look to rebound on Saturday at The Dock as they take on Langston University at 2 p.m.