Malachi Nix led four Hawks in double figures with 23 points to carry Rockhurst to an 80-73 victory over Missouri Southern Monday night at Mason-Halpin Field House.

Nix gave Rockhurst the lead for good with a layup at the 4:06 mark to give the Hawks a 62-60 lead. Rockhurst iced the victory by making nine-of-12 free throws in the final 74 seconds.

"I was real proud at the way we competed tonight," said Rockhurst coach Drew Diener. "We've had some struggles offensively in the first half, but we still brought great toughness to the defensive end. We've talked a lot about that in the preseason and practice about establishing a mentality that doesn't go away when times are tough on the offensive end."

After scoring 29 points on 37.5 percent shooting in the first half, the Hawks shot 60 percent on 18-of-30 field goal shooting while scoring 51 points in the second half.

Adam Fatkin posted 12 points and five rebounds. Alex Hagan tallied 11 points, eight rebounds and four assists. Nix also collected a team-high five assists and six rebounds. Austin LeVan and Connor Evans combined for 22 points off the bench.

"We got great contributions off the bench again and I love the mentality of our team right now," added Diener.

Rockhurst shot 50 percent from the field (27 of 54) and 80.8 percent from the free-throw line (21 of 26). Southern made 25-of-64 field goals (39.1 percent) and 19-of-24 free throws (79.2 percent). Taevaunn Prince paced the Lions with 20 points and eight rebounds.

The Hawks, 3-1, return to the road to face Newman in Wichita, Kan., on Saturday, November 28 at 3 p.m.