INDIANAPOLIS - Sammy Hunter and Fred Oguns scored 14 points apiece but Western Illinois' comeback attempt against first-place IUPUI fell just short in a 66-59 loss. Down 17 with 7:49 remaining, the Leathernecks (7-16, 3-9) used seven straight points by Oguns to spark an 18-4 run that cut their deficit to three, 62-59, with 1:31 to play. The Jaguars were held scoreless for three minutes during the rally, but scored the game's final four points to hold off the Leathernecks. George Hill, who led all scorers with 20 points, broke the drought for IUPUI with a layup at 1:05 and David Barlow knocked down a pair of free throws with 36 seconds remaining to put the Jaguars out of reach. IUPUI (15-7, 10-1) jumped out to a 9-1 lead at the start of the game and its 37-25 halftime lead was its largest of the period. The Leathernecks were able to make their second-half surge despite shooting just 29.6 percent from the field while IUPUI hit 50 percent after the break and 56 percent for the game. Western converted 16 of its 17 second-half free throw attempts and hit 19-of-21 (.905) on the night while IUPUI was 10-of-13. Hill was joined in double figures by Brandon Cole (16 points) and Maushae Byles (11). Postgame quotes from Western Illinois head coach Derek Thomas:"We can be a dangerous team when we play like we did for the last 10 minutes. We fought extremely hard after we got down. I hate to be proud when we lose, but I am tonight. You saw some great basketball and a great team effort. A lot of guys had to step up to make it happen." On the second-half run: "Our shots weren't falling but we were able to do it by locking up on defense and we just didn't let them score. On the other end, we had guys passing the ball, not turning it over, and it got exciting." On the slow start to each half: "We didn't bring our best game to start. You can't get away with that against the first-place team." Postgame notes:- David Jackson was held to a pair of free throws in the scoring column, but led the Leathernecks with seven rebounds and four assists in 38 minutes. - Sammy Hunter tallied a career-high four steals. - Both teams notched 28 rebounds. Western has not been outrebounded in eight games. - The Leathernecks have shot better than 90 percent from the free throw line twice this season. - IUPUI's 29 second-half points were the fewest by a Leatherneck opponent since Centenary scored 22 in the second half in Macomb. Their 66 total points was 11.5 below their league average of 77.5. - Western committed fewer turnovers (9-12) than its opponent for the first time since the league opener.