Southwestern men got off to a hot start and withstood a second-half Kirkwood charge to pick up a key conference victory here Saturday.

The Spartans took a 40-27 halftime lead on the way to defeating Kirkwood, 69-63. The Eagles stormed back to take a brief one-point lead in the second half, 52-51, but Southwestern regained control down the stretch.

“Defensively we stepped up, got some big stops and rebounds,” said Southwestern coach Mike Holmes. “They’re quality, so they came back on us with more energy in the second half. But we didn’t push the panic button. We made some big free throws at the end, particularly by Patrick Wright and Marcus Littleton.”