Monthly Archives: December 2017

Texas, minus its top scorer, prepares to host Michigan

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Texas basketball coach Shaka Smart speculated Monday that guard Andrew Jones would be out “at least the next few games” before Christmas with a hairline fracture in his right wrist.

Jones is Texas’ leading scorer at 15.3 points per game.

The Longhorns (6-2) host the Michigan Wolverines (8-3) tonight at the Erwin Center.

The game will be carried on ESPN2 starting at 8 p.m.

In meeting with reporters Monday in Austin, Smart didn’t understate the impact the injury could have on his team.

“Obviously it’s a tough injury for us because he’s our leading scorer and has just done a phenomenal job for us this year,” the coach said. “But we’re really excited and hopeful about getting him back as quick as we can.

“In the short term, it’s one of the reasons you have a team with depth and (it’s) why you bring guys in to step up and be part of something that’s larger than themselves.

“We’re going to need everyone on our team, not just guards, but everyone on our team to step up and take (on) a little more responsibility.”

Forward Dylan Ostetkowski (14.0), guard Kerwin Roach II (11.1) and center Mohamed Bamba (10.7) are Texas’ next three top scorers.

Jones, a sophomore from Irving, suffered the injury in Texas’ 71-67 victory at Virginia Commonwealth last Tuesday.

Junior forward Moritz Wagner (16.1 ppg, 8.0 rpg) leads the Wolverines, who have lost to LSU on a neutral site and to North Carolina and Ohio State on the road.

In its last outing, Michigan won at home on Saturday, beating UCLA 78-69 in overtime.

The Wolverines trailed the Bruins by 15 in the second half and then rallied for a win that will supply substantial momentum leading into Austin.

Texas Tech’s Chris Beard: My players have made me better

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Texas Tech freshman Zhaire Smith throws down a dunk off a rebound to fire up the home crowd in Lubbock.

With second-year coach Chris Beard at the helm, the Texas Tech Red Raiders have started to assert themselves as a potential threat in the Big 12 Conference. This is something of a surprise considering that Tech was picked seventh in the conference’s preseason poll.

But since the season started, the Red Raiders have been much better than advertised. They’ve forged a 7-1 record with victories at home over two ranked opponents. Two weeks ago, Tech emerged as a Top 25 team itself, showing up at No. 22 in the Associated Press poll.

After a 10-point loss to Seton Hall, the Red Raiders fell out of the rankings for a week, only to re-appear on Monday at No. 24. Now, it’s starting to look like they might be a fixture in the national spotlight.

Buoyed by an energized fan base and by a group of talented athletes playing hard for him, Beard could be poised for a big season. Tech’s latest triumph came last Tuesday when it rallied from a 10-point second-half deficit to beat Nevada, 82-76, in overtime.

More than 9,000 fans at United Supermarkets Arena roared as Keenan Evans scored 25 of his career-high 32 points after intermission. Beard credited the fans, his players and his staff for making it happen.

“You got to give the players a lot of credit,” he said. “These guys have made me a better coach. I’m kind of a competitive, fiery guy. Patience isn’t one of my strengths. But I think with these guys, I’ve really tried to learn to try to keep the culture positive during the game. Now, we still tell the truth. If we’re not playing well, I’ll be the first to tell ‘em.

“But I think overall, as a coach, you try to give your team a chance to win the game. I give our staff a lot of credit. We didn’t have any panicked timeouts. We didn’t get negative. We stayed positive. I’m proud of our staff for doing that. We gave our players a chance to win the game tonight. Give our players all the credit. They’re the ones that did it.”

Tech clearly has more going on this season than in Beard’s first, when the Red Raiders finished 18-14. The Red Raiders started 11-1 through the non-conference phase of the schedule last year, but they did it against a weaker schedule.

This year, the Red Raiders have defeated two Top 25 opponents (Northwestern and Nevada), and they also knocked off Boston College. The Eagles aren’t ranked but they did beat previously undefeated and No. 1 Duke last weekend.

Tech’s only loss came on Nov. 30 in New York’s Madison Square Garden. Seton Hall of the Big East hit 11 three-pointers and scored 50 points during the second half. Asked after the victory over Nevada whether his team learned a few lessons in defeat, Beard said they did.

“Just like every team in the country, we’re a work in progress,” he said. “We’re trying to get better. The Seton Hall game, we didn’t think we were the most aggressive team. Tonight (against Nevada), I think we were. And even if we lose this game tonight to a really good Nevada team, I still think the same thing. I thought we were aggressive enough down the stretch to give ourselves a chance.”

Beard said the Red Raiders did a better job of keeping their composure against the Wolf Pack.

“Against Seton Hall, it turned into a 6-7 minute game (and) we made too many mistakes. We didn’t make enough plays,” he said. “Tonight, when it turned into a 6-7 minute game, we’re still making mistakes. But I thought we were making plays. You know, victory favors the more aggressive team. Sometimes, you got to go make a play, especially at this level. I thought we did that tonight.”

Villanova takes over at No. 1; Texas A&M 9th in AP poll

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Knocked out in the second round of the the NCAA tournament last spring, the Villanova Wildcats are back on top as the No. 1 team in the latest Associated Press Top 25 poll.

Four teams from the state of Texas are also in the rankings. Texas A&M is 9th, undefeated TCU is 14th, Baylor is 21st and Texas Tech 24th.

Villanova has been one of the nation’s most consistently dominant teams over the past few years.

In 2016, the Wildcats entered the NCAA tournament seeded second in their region and seventh overall and soared to the championship.

Last year, Villanova was seeded first in its region and first overall. But in a round-of-32 game at Buffalo, the defending champs lost to Wisconsin, 65-62.

So far this season, the Wildcats have forged a 10-0 record. Led by dynamic guard Mikal Bridges, they play at Temple on Wednesday.

Big men from San Antonio standing tall in NCAA Division I

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Minnesota’s Jordan Murphy isn’t the only big man from the San Antonio area making an impact in NCAA Division I basketball this season. Here is a breakdown on four of the best from Final Four city:

Who: Jordan Murphy, Minnesota junior from Brennan
Size, position: 6-6, 250, forward
Notable: Averaging 19.9 points and 12.5 rebounds. His 11 double doubles lead the nation. He’s also fourth nationally in rebounds and leads the Big Ten.

Who: Ben Lammers, Georgia Tech senior from Alamo Heights
Size, position: 6-10, 234, center
Notable: Averaging 14.3 points, 8.1 rebounds, 3.8 blocks. He’s eighth in the nation in blocks.

Who: Tanner Leissner, New Hampshire senior from Judson
Size, position: 6-7, 230, center
Notable: Averaging 19.2 points, 8.8 rebounds. His scoring leads the team and ranks second in the America East Conference.

Who: Tristan Clark, Baylor freshman from Wagner
Size, position: 6-9, 240, forward
Notable: Averaging 8.4 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1.2 blocks. One of four players to start all nine games for the Bears.

Can anyone stop Middle Tennessee in the C-USA?

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Building on a burgeoning winning tradition in men’s college basketball, the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders appear poised to make another run at the Conference USA title.

Coach Kermit Davis’ Blue Raiders, based in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, opened eyes two years ago by knocking off Tom Izzo’s Michigan State Spartans in the round of 64 of the NCAA tournament.

Last year, they did it again, taking down Minnesota in the NCAA’s R64.

This season, the Blue Raiders continue to step up their game.

They swept two games against Southeastern Conference foes in the last week, improving to 5-0 against the SEC since 2015.

With a 77-58 win over Ole Miss Saturday at the Murphy Center, the Blue Raiders (7-1) continued to burnish their reputation as the top program in the C-USA.

It was the second SEC victory of the season for Middle Tennessee, with the first coming Wednesday at Vanderbilt.

“The score really wasn’t indicative of what the game was, it just kind of broke open in the last three or four minutes,” Middle Tennessee coach Kermit Davis told reporters later. “What a great fan turnout for our team, over 8,000 fans.

“It was a big game for us, for our town and our campus. When our team has that kind of home court, it means a lot to those guys in that locker room.”

Newcomer Nick King, who has played at both Memphis and Alabama in his college career, has been well worth the price of admission so far.

The 6-foot-7 forward from Memphis East High School is averaging 24.3 points and 6.6 rebounds. King is shooting 55.5 percent from the field.

“Coach always preaches to us about being a national team, and that we have to have the opportunity to show it and take advantage,” he said. “We have the opportunity now, and we’re taking advantage.

“We’re practicing absolutely as hard as we can each and every practice. Not a lot of teams do that during the season … but we have to have that edge every single day.”

Wallace scores 24, UTSA beats Houston Baptist, 87-71

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Freshman guard Keaton Wallace sparked a late offensive surge Saturday night, turning a close game into an 87-71 victory for the UTSA Roadrunners over the Houston Baptist Huskies.

The Huskies had rallied to within five points with 6:26 remaining when Wallace went to work, scoring 13 during a 19-7 streak by the Roadrunners.

When it was over, UTSA held an 83-66 lead with a little more than a minute remaining.

Wallace finished with a season-high 24 for the Roadrunners (6-5) as they snapped out of a two-game losing streak.

Byron Frohnen added 18, and Nick Allen and Deon Lyle produced 13 apiece.

Houston Baptist (3-7) played tough all night, even without starting center Josh Ibarra, who went to the bench two minutes into the game with an apparent ankle injury.

He did not return.

In his absence, freshman forward David Caraher filled the void nicely, producing career-highs of 30 points and 16 rebounds.

Coming off a road trip to New Jersey, where they played St. Peter’s on Wednesday night and then traveled most of the day Thursday, the Huskies forged a lead for 9:03 of the first half.

UTSA trailed by one when it constructed a 13-4 run in the final 3:42 leading into intermission. Frohnen scored six points in that stretch.

“It was kind of a choppy start,” UTSA coach Steve Henson said. “Kind of a choppy game, really. No flow. Couldn’t get anything going. Didn’t shoot it well early and turned it over a lot early.

“But, yeah, we never got our normal flow going. Other than the first half down in the Bahamas, that was the most dis-jointed we’ve looked all year.”

Henson applauded the play of Caraher, who hit 10 of 16 from the field.

“Obviously their freshman player, he killed us,” Henson said. “He’s a good player. He gave us fits.”

Fortunately for Henson, he had an answer in Wallace, a talented freshman lefty who connected on 7 field goals, including 5 of 12 from long distance.

“It’s like he does most nights,” Henson said. “Good player. He’s consistent. Every time he shoots, I think it’s going in. Sometimes I play him when he’s not making shots thinking the next one’s going in.”

Wallace said the Roadrunners knew they were in a “dog fight” late in the game with the Huskies, who play in the Southland Conference.

As a result, the Roadrunners clamped down on the defensive end and then started executing their inside-out game on offense.

“We practice that a lot,” Wallace said. “It’s like, drive and kick. Get to the paint, kick, because, we got a lot of people that can shoot.”

UTSA sophomore Byron Frohnen drives to the bucket for an easy basket. Video: theJBreplay

Gates family reunion

Houston Baptist senior Will Gates, Jr., got off to a fast start with eight points in the first half.

But he was held to 12 for the game on 4 of 9 shooting.

Jalon Gates, his younger brother, came off the bench for the Huskies and was limited to just two points on 1 of 5 shooting.

Afterward, the two brothers and former standouts at Clemens High School met with family and friends in the foyer of the UTSA Convocation Center.

Will Gates, Sr., the players’ father, is a former Chicago playground basketball legend who was featured in the critically-acclaimed documentary, ‘Hoop Dreams.’

Will Gates, Sr., with sons Will, Jr., (left) and Jalon (right) after Saturday night’s game at UTSA. Photo: theJBreplay.com

Boston College holds on to upset top-ranked Duke, 89-84

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Sophomore guard Ky Bowman scored 30 points Saturday as Boston College upset previously undefeated and No. 1-ranked Duke 89-84.

In a tour de force performance, the former high school football and basketball standout from Havelock, North Carolina added 10 rebounds and nine assists in an emotional victory at BC, where fans stormed the court in celebration.

Junior Jerome Robinson (24 points) and Jordan Chapman (22) supported Bowman with stunningly-accurate shooting from long distance.

Robinson and Chapman both hit five 3-point shots for the Eagles, who nailed 15 from long distance. Bowman added three.

Guard Gary Trent, Jr., scored 25 points for the Blue Devils, who fell to 11-1 and to 0-1 in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Boston College (7-3, 1-0) had lost previously to Texas Tech, Providence and Nebraska.

How good was Bowman as a high school football player? Well, according to the Havelock News, he passed on an offer to play for the home-state North Carolina Tar Heels.

UTSA will host ‘Hoop Dreams’ duo tonight at the Bird Cage

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Brothers Will Gates, Jr. (left) and Jalon Gates play for the Houston Baptist Huskies. Courtesy: Houston Baptist athletics

The sons of former Chicago basketball playground legend William Gates, a subject of the critically-acclaimed documentary “Hoop Dreams,” will play in San Antonio tonight.

Senior William Gates, Jr. and his brother, sophomore Jalon Gates, are members of the Houston Baptist University Huskies.

The Huskies (3-6) and the UTSA Roadrunners (5-5) will play tonight at 7 on the UTSA campus, at the Convocation Center.

It’s a homecoming of sorts for the Gates brothers, who both played in high school locally at Clemens.

Gates, Jr., a transfer from Furman, starts for the Huskies and averages 8.7 points on 56.5 percent shooting from the field.

Jalon Gates comes off the bench and averages 9.7 points. Gates leads HBU with 40 percent shooting from three-point distance.

The Gates brothers, both of them guards, will have their hands full with the Roadrunners.

UTSA freshman guard Jhivvan Jackson leads the team in scoring (17.6) and is coming off a 31-point game at Oklahoma.

Jackson and fellow freshman guard Keaton Wallace (14.4) have combined to hit 52 of UTSA’s 104 three-pointers.

TCU edges Nevada, extends winning streak to 15 games

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The 20th-ranked TCU Horned Frogs remained undefeated with an 84-80 victory over No. 22 Nevada on Friday night in Los Angeles.

The Frogs (10-0) have won 15 games in a row dating to last season’s run to the NIT championship.

The 15-game streak is the longest in the nation.

UIW coach says 7-footer set to return on Dec. 22

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The Incarnate Word men’s basketball program learned Thursday that 7-foot center Konstantin Kulikov has been cleared to play this season, starting with a Dec. 22 road game at Florida.

Konstantin Kulikov (Soobum Im / The University of the Incarnate Word)

Kulikov’s status had been in question since October pending a review by the NCAA.

He hasn’t been able to practice or play during UIW’s 4-3 start, and he must sit out upcoming games against Missouri-Kansas City and UTEP, coach Ken Burmeister said.

But the coach said Kulikov will return to practice with the team on Friday, in preparation for his anticipated UIW debut at fifth-ranked Florida.

“We get him back for conference, you know, and that’s important,” Burmeister said.

UIW opens Southland Conference competition on Dec. 28 at McNeese State.

Kulikov is from Oryol, Russia. He comes to UIW with experience playing at a prep academy in Spain, in FIBA-sanctioned tournaments and at San Jacinto Junior College.

At San Jac, he started and averaged 6 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.4 blocks for a squad that went 33-2.

UIW guard Keaton Hervey blocks a shot during the first half Tuesday night. The Cardinals, who rank fifth in the nation with 7.1 blocks per game, are expected to get boost in that department with the return of 7-foot center Konstantin Kulikov. Video: theJBreplay.com