KATY — One night after clinching a long-awaited 20th win, Lamar wanted to go another step further in its men’s basketball season.

So did the University of New Orleans, just two years removed from its most recent NCAA tournament appearance.

Bryson Robinson made the game-winning three-point basket with 21.7 seconds to cap a flurry of clutch shots by UNO in a 76-72 win over Lamar on Thursday in the quarterfinal round of the Southland Conference Tournament at Katy ISD’s Leonard E. Merrell Center.

The Cardinals (20-13), who had been stuck on 19 victories each of the past two seasons, will likely settle for either a third trip in a row to the CollegeInsider.com Tournament or the College Basketball Invitational. Senior Nick Garth scored 28 points in the loss, which ended a nine-game winning streak.

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But, as assistant coach Bobby Kummer reminded, this is also a Lamar team that started 1-4 in Southland play.

The defeat left three of Lamar’s players — guards Garth and Davion Buster and forward Josh Nzeakor — visibly speechless at the start of their postgame conference at first. Head coach Tic Price was in the conference room as well, but he was literally speechless because he lost his voice, leaving Kummer to speak in his place.

UNO (18-12) will take on Sam Houston State, the tournament’s No. 1 seed, at 5 p.m. Friday.

Scott Plaisance, who finished with 16 points, gave the Privateers (18-12) a push into the lead, hitting a jumper with 1:33 left and, after a Lamar traveling call, making a hook shot at the 1:05 mark to put them up 71-70. UNO then was called for basket interference on an Nzeakor putback with 50 seconds left.

UNO’s Troy Green brought the ball to the top of the key and gave it up to Robinson (17 points), who after a few dribbles sank a three-ball in front of V.J. Holmes to regain the lead.

The Cardinals turned to freshman Buster (14 points), known for his slump-busting shots, as time wound down, but his long-range three-pointer drew iron, and Damion Ross secured the rebound and was fouled with 1.3 seconds left. Ross made the insurance free throws.

The Privateers were up 42-28 following a Robinson jumper with 3:18 left in the first half. From there, Buster warmed up.

The Austin freshman scored 8 of the Cards’ last 12 points of the first half, including a three-point basket that narrowed the would-be halftime score to 42-40.

UNO charged out of the second-half gate with a 9-2 run. Holmes, Buster, Nzeakor and Garth then took charge of the Cardinals’ offense, and a 62-55 lead for the Privateers quickly turned into a 64-62 Lamar edge.

The Privateers moved ahead, 65-64, on a Plaisance jumper with 6:09 left, but Lamar went back up 69-65 as Garth and Avery Sullivan were fouled on made baskets, back-to-back. Garth made his free throw.

UNO, which played in the 2017 NCAA tournament, had been playing without All-Southland player Ezekial Charles, who sustained a torn Achilles in practice on Feb. 12. Charles was the Privateers’ leading scorer and rebounder.

Nzeakor had 12 points and 11 rebounds, and Garth made 4 of 7 three-point baskets. As a team, Lamar finished shooting 25 of 56 from the field (44.6 percent) after starting 14 of 25 (56.0). The Cards went 8 for 20 (40.0) from three-point range and made 14 of 24 free throws (58.3).

Jorge Rosa sank 13 points for the Privateers, who shot 27 of 59 (45.8) from the field, including 8 of 15 (53.3) from the arc, and made 14 of 22 (63.6) free throws.

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I.C. Murrell: 721-2435. Twitter: @ICMurrellPANews