Jordyn Jenkins remains ‘day to day’ as the UTSA women host Temple

Idara Udo. UTSA women's basketball beat UAB 67-56 in an American Athletic Conference game on Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Forward Idara Udo had 16 points and eight rebounds in UTSA’s last home game, Jan. 22, when the Roadrunners beat the Tulsa Golden Hurricane 64-53 for their 11th straight victory at the Convocation Center. – File photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Trying to rebound after a loss for the first time since mid-December, UTSA coach Karen Aston pronounced her team ready to play for Saturday’s home game against the Temple Owls.

Asked about the mood in Friday’s practice, Aston said, “You know, you want to get right back on it. You got to look at it. You know, you can’t ignore it. You got to look and see where you went wrong and how to get better.

Jordyn Jenkins. UTSA women's basketball beat UAB 67-56 in an American Athletic Conference game on Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Jordyn Jenkins is listed as day to day for the Roadrunners. – File photo by Joe Alexander

“You sure don’t want to let one loss turn into two or whatever. You got to turn the page pretty quickly. I think we did that. We worked on some things we need to do better. Had a chance to look at film, and, yeah, ready to go.”

Tipoff in the American Athletic Conference contest between the Roadrunners (17-3, 8-1) and the Owls (12-8, 6-3) is set for 2 p.m. Saturday at the Convocation Center.

UTSA forward Jordyn Jenkins, the AAC’s leading scorer, is regarded as day to day leading into the Temple game.

Injured after she fell to the court on Jan. 22 at home against Tulsa, Jenkins sat out for the first time this season on Wednesday night in Tampa, Fla., where the Bulls won 75-63 to snap the Roadrunners’ 10-game winning streak.

Aston said Jenkins participated in a Friday afternoon workout. “She went through some stuff,” the coach said. “She’s been going through some stuff. She’s just day to day. We’re taking this as slow as we can, to make sure she’s good.”

If Jenkins can’t play, the Roadrunners will need to adjust. Not only is she the team’s leading scorer (18.9), she’s also its leading rebounder (7.3) and one of its best defenders.

Aston said her players responded well to the adversity, for the most part, against South Florida.

“When you look at the game the other night, we were in the game, the whole game,” she said. “I just thought we didn’t rebound great. When you ask people to step into different roles, some of that is doing some of the little things that they haven’t had to do.

“We just have to be better in some areas. We got to box out. We got to try to get some extra possessions ourselves and play some people that maybe we didn’t have an opportunity to play as many minutes … You know, it’s next man up.

“You got to be ready. It’s always an opportunity for someone else to step in and do their job. I mean, that’s why they’re here. That’s why they practice. That’s why they do what they do, is for opportunity.”

Records

Temple (12-8, 6-3)
UTSA (17-3, 8-1)

Coming up

Temple at UTSA, Saturday, 2 p.m.
North Texas at UTSA, Tuesday, 6:30 p.m.

Notable

UTSA is 8-0 at the Convocation Center this season and is on an 11-game homecourt winning streak, tied for the longest in school history.

“I think we take a lot of pride in playing at home and winning at home,” Aston said. “But it’s getting to be nitty-gritty time now. Everybody’s digging for position and wanting to stay in the hunt. You just have to grit your teeth and get after it now.”

Previously, UTSA had an 11-game home winning streak that spanned two seasons, from Jan. 9, 2002 to Nov. 28, 2003.

Last season, the Owls won 20 games and forged a 13-5 record in the AAC to tie for the regular-season championship. They beat the Roadrunners twice last season, once in Philadelphia and once in San Antonio.

Temple, in fact, was the last team to beat UTSA in the Convo. The Owls did it on Feb. 22, 2004, when they won 56-48.

Aston said this year’s Temple team is “very similar” to last year.

“Almost a mirror image of the one we played last year, to be honest with you,” the coach said. “They defend really well. They turn you over. You can’t have a bunch of live ball turnovers against them. They rebound well.

“The point guard on their team last year (Aleah Nelson) was really, really good. Very experienced,” Aston said. “But the other guys have stepped into that role and filled it pretty well. I mean, they’re a good basketball team. Really solid team.”

South Florida women snap UTSA’s 10-game winning streak with a 75-63 victory

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Six-foot-three guard Romy Levy came off the bench to score 21 points Wednesday night as the South Florida Bulls defeated UTSA, 75-63, to snap the Roadrunners’ 10-game winning streak.

In the game contested on the Bulls’ home floor in Tampa, Fla., UTSA played without Jordyn Jenkins, a player of the year candidate in the American Athletic Conference.

Jenkins sat out the final quarter of UTSA’s last game, which was last Wednesday in San Antonio. The leading scorer in the American fell late in the third quarter against Tulsa and didn’t return.

The 6-foot senior dressed out and was on the bench at South Florida but didn’t get into the game.

A UTSA spokesman confirmed after the game that Jenkins was “banged up” in the Tulsa game. He said she sat out against South Florida for “precautionary reasons.”

The Roadrunners return home to play the Temple Owls Saturday at 2 p.m. in the Convocation Center. The spokesman said Jenkins is day to day.

Even without their leading scorer and rebounder, the Roadrunners stayed close to the Bulls for most of the night. Led offensively by Cheyenne Rowe and Sidney Love, they were within three at halftime and within seven at the end of three quarters.

After a three pointer by Nina De Leon Negron with 7:01 remaining, it was a four-point game, as South Florida looked a little rattled with only a 56-52 advantage.

From there, the Levy and the Bulls took over.

Levy scored nine points down the stretch as the home team pulled away. Sammie Puisis scored 16 and Carla Brito had 14 for the Bulls, who exacted a measure of revenge after the Roadrunners ended their season last March in the quarterfinals of the AAC tournament.

Mama Dembele, a point guard, had a successful night with eight points and 11 assists for South Florida.

Not only did she run an offense that shot 58 percent from the field against the Roadrunners, she was the primary defender on De Leon Negron and played well. De Leon Negron finished with nine points on two for 10 shooting.

For the Roadrunners, Rowe started for Jenkins on the front line and scored 15 points on six of 11 shooting. Love added 14 points on a seven-for-11 night. De Leon Negron, one of UTSA’s leaders all season, had nine points, six rebounds and three assists.

Notable

The 10-game streak was tied for the second longest in UTSA program history, with the team’s last loss coming on Dec. 16 at Stanford.

Quotable

“They were better than us tonight,” UTSA coach Karen Aston told the team’s radio broadcast. “Sometimes you just don’t match the moment. And, they were just better than we were. They’ve played like this some. Obviously I watched a lot of film on them, and there were games when they looked like this and there were games that they didn’t. This is just one of those games they played really well. Kudos to them. They played better than we did.”

Records

UTSA 17-3, 8-1
South Florida 14-8, 7-2

Coming up

Temple at UTSA, Saturday, 2 p.m.

Notable

North Texas won at home Wednesday night, edging Temple 70-67. As a result, UTSA and North Texas are tied for first in the AAC at 8-1. South Florida is 7-2, followed by Temple and Tulane, both 6-3. Tulane also won at home Wednesday, knocking off FAU, 68-52.

First half

With Jenkins watching from the bench, the Roadrunners played two quarters of solid defense. But the Bulls also did well on the defensive end and took a 28-25 lead into the break at intermission.

Puisis, who sat out with an injury in two losses to UTSA last season, led all scorers with nine points on three of seven shooting from the field. She hit one of two from three.

Love led the Roadrunners with eight points on four of five shooting. Without Jenkins on the floor, the Roadrunners shot 40 percent from the field.

FAU men rout the UTSA Roadrunners, 94-74, in Boca Raton

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The FAU Owls bolted to a 15-point halftime lead, built it to as many as 29 in the second half and then cruised to an easy 94-74 victory over the UTSA Roadrunners Wednesday in men’s college basketball.

In an American Athletic Conference game played at Boca Raton, Fla., guard KyKy Tandy scored 26 points to lead five FAU players in double figures.

The Owls shot 65 percent from the field in the second half and 54 percent for the game against the short-handed Roadrunners, who once again played with only eight scholarship players.

Tandy took the lead role in the offensive binge, hitting nine of 11 shots from the field and eight of 10 from the 3-point arc.

For the Roadrunners, six-foot-six guard Damari Monsanto continued his hot shooting, scoring 21 points on seven 3-point baskets. The Wake Forest transfer finished seven-for-nine from beyond the arc.

Another hot hand for UTSA, Houston area native Marcus Millender, scored 19. But the Owls did a decent job on the South Alabama transfer, who was held to six of 17 from the floor. FAU also did a decent job with Primo Spears, who finished with 16 points on six of 16.

A turning point came late in the first half. After Monsanto buried his fourth three of the game on the fast break to pull the Roadrunners to within one point, the Owls took off on an 18-4 run to the buzzer.

FAU put an exclamation mark on the run when it inbounded from the baseline to Baba Miller, who delivered from the post for a 47-32 lead with 32 seconds remaining.

The Owls won the rebounding battle 28-9 in the opening half and 43-28 for the game against the Roadrunners, who are playing without two big men that they had in their original recruiting class last summer.

After his rebound and basket to end the half, the Owls had firm control of the proceedings. In the first minute of the second half, Millender knocked down a three to bring UTSA to within 12.

Just like that, the Owls struck back, going off on a 15-3 streak to make it a 24-point game. Consecutive triples by Tandy, a transfer from Jacksonville State, made it 62-38 with 16 minutes left.

The Roadrunners would get no closer than 17 the rest of the way.

Just like the Roadrunners, the Owls have retooled their program with a new coach, John Jakus, who led his team to a victory over the Oklahoma State Cowboys earlier in the season. Backing up Tandy, Kaleb Glenn produced 17 points and seven rebounds off the bench. Guard Ken Evans Jr. and 7-foot center Matas Vokietaitis scored 12 points each.

The 6-foot-11 Miller was a wonder on the floor, with multiple skills, as he finished with 10 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds.

Records

UTSA 9-11, 3-5
FAU 11-10, 4-4

Coming up

UTSA at North Texas, Saturday, 5 p.m.

UTSA women take a 10-game winning streak into South Florida

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The stakes keep rising for the UTSA women as they ride a 10-game winning streak into an American Athletic Conference road game against the South Florida Bulls.

Jordyn Jenkins. UTSA women's basketball beat Rice 67-58 in American Athletic Conference action at the Convocation Center on Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Forward Jordyn Jenkins averages 18.9 points and 7.3 rebounds for the Roadrunners, who beat the Bulls twice last season, including once in the quarterfinals of the AAC tournament. – File photo by Joe Alexander

The first-place Roadrunners (17-2, 8-0) lead the Bulls (13-8, 6-2) by two games in the standings with 10 to play in the regular season. Last fall, the Bulls were installed as the preseason favorites to win the AAC, and they battled through a rugged non-conference schedule, including seven games against Power 4 competition.

Playing at home on Dec. 21, they knocked off the top-10 Duke Blue Devils, which has allowed them to leap over the Roadrunners in the NCAA Evaluation Tool ratings. Even with six more losses, South Florida is the top AAC team in the NET at No. 67, five spots ahead of No. 72 UTSA, leading into tonight’s game in Tampa.

With the NET used to calculate teams’ strengths as they’re considered for the NCAA tournament, the ratings are not too much on anyone’s radar right now. But it surely would be a good thing for the Roadrunners to beat the Bulls for ratings points that could come in handy going into March.

If the Roadrunners are feeling any “big game” vibes, they didn’t really show it in a week of preparation since Jan. 22, their last game, when they beat Tulsa at home.

“I was curious if they would feel that way,” UTSA coach Karen Aston said. “To be honest, they didn’t look a whole lot different, which is, I think, a good sign.”

Consistent preparation has been a hallmark for a Roadrunners team off to its best start after 19 games in school history.

“Their habits are who they are,” Aston said. “I’m not sure that they’re approaching this game much differently than they have any of the other ones that we’ve played. I think they’re all big. You clearly can see anybody can beat anybody on a given night. I think it would be a mistake to treat one game bigger than the other.”

Records

UTSA 17-2, 10-0
South Florida 13-8, 6-2

Coming up

UTSA at South Florida, tonight, 6 p.m.
Temple at UTSA, Saturday, 2 p.m.
North Texas at UTSA, Tuesday, Feb. 4, 6:30 p.m.
UTSA at Wichita State, Saturday, Feb. 8, 1 p.m.

Notable

Aston said the break in the schedule, without having to play a game last weekend, came at a good time. “We had some kids dinged up a little bit,” she said. “Fatigue was starting to set in just from the length of the schedule, travel, all of that, school starting again. So it was a good time for us to push a re-set button.

“The kids got acclimated a little bit in going back to school. It’s always kind of a learning curve when they all start back to school again, especially for the freshmen that have never really experienced the Christmas break and then back into classes again. So I think we’ve settled in. Just a time to take a deep breath and have an extra day off.”

UTSA beat South Florida twice last year, once by a 65-42 score in San Antonio and again by a 58-56 count in Fort Worth at the AAC tournament in Fort Worth.

Tonight will be the first time UTSA will face 6-foot-1 South Florida sharpshooter Sammie Puisis, who had to sit out most of last season with a knee injury. Puisis, who averages 14.7 points, shoots 43.2 percent from the three-point line. The Bulls are No. 1 in the conference at 36.2 in three-point accuracy.

Short-handed UTSA men are showing spark leading into a road test at FAU

Marcus Millender. UTSA beat Temple 88-79 in American Athletic Conference men's basketball on Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Sophomore guard Marcus Millender is averaging 12.3 points, 3.3 assists and 1.6 steals for the UTSA Roadrunners, who will play at Florida Atlantic on Wednesday after winning three of their last five in the American Athletic Conference. – File photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The UTSA men’s basketball team isn’t blessed with a vast reservoir of talent. But the talented players they do have are capable of tapping into deep reserves of fortitude, which allows them to rebound from tough situations and compete at surprisingly high levels.

It’s a trait I noticed early in the season during the Roadrunners’ 1-3 start. During that stretch I remember asking guard Primo Spears about his level of optimism for the team in the wake of lopsided losses to Bradley and Little Rock.

Spears said he wasn’t worried because, as he said, his teammates’ talents would come to light soon enough.

Sure enough, the Roadrunners rebounded from their early struggles and started playing better, nearly knocking off the Saint Mary’s Gaels on the road in Moraga, Calif. They continued with two wins against North Dakota, a bizarre home-and-away played over a course of three days.

UTSA’s uptick in good fortune, as it turned out, seemed to stall out a bit as players returned from the Christmas break. In the Roadrunners’ last non-conference game, they stumbled. With a chance for a road victory and a four-game winning streak, they lost to the Army Black Knights, 77-74.

Then they were routed in the American Athletic Conference opener, losing 92-63 to the Tulane Green Wave. Another loss followed when they returned home. Seemingly on their way to a victory over the Tulsa Golden Hurricane, their defense faltered late, and they lost 82-77.

For the most part, the Roadrunners have played well since then. Waging the good fight with a couple of their big men unavailable and now with guard Tai’Reon Joseph also sitting out, UTSA has won three of its last five in AAC play.

They capped the five-game stretch with a quality win at home Saturday, defeating the Temple Owls, 88-79. With the win, they again displayed promising stretches of disruptive defense and explosive offense, improving to 9-10 overall and to 3-4 in the American.

On the eve of road games this week against FAU and North Texas, I talked to Coach Austin Claunch this morning, telling him about my previous conversation with Spears and then asking him to help explain the source of his team’s resilience.

“I think we have an older team. We have a mature team,” Claunch said. “Obviously Primo is a guy who’s played a lot of college basketball and has been a part of a lot of our wins. You know, it’s a long season. You’re going to have ups and downs. You’re probably not going to go undefeated.

“There’s going to be moments of adversity that you have to overcome,” the coach continued. “I thought early in the year, (with a) brand new team, we were still working through some rotations and things we wanted to do schematically.”

Now, their offense looks good on most nights, with crisp ball movement and unselfish play. But at the same time, their defense is vulnerable with opponents shooting 46 percent from the field and 35 percent from three.

Also, broader questions loom. Such as, how long can they continue to win when they’re missing five scholarship players, with three of the absences left largely unexplained and two out with injuries?

“This is the time of year that everyone is banged up a little bit,” Claunch said. “You have bruises here and there. You know, Primo was actually questionable for the Temple game. He got banged up in practice the day before and gutted it out.”

Injured Roadrunners include center Mo Njie and reserve guard Paul Lewis, both with foot ailments. Lewis has been ruled out for the season, and Njie’s return is uncertain. Players whose status can only be described as not available at the moment are Tai’Reon Joseph, Jaquan Scott and Skylar Wicks.

Joseph was on the bench for the Temple game, though he wasn’t dressed out to play, as he missed his second straight game after a 19-point outburst against North Texas. Claunch said he hopes to know more in coming days on Joseph’s status. For the time being, the coach said he is questionable for FAU.

I have no updated information on Scott, a Mississippi State transfer, or Wicks, who came over from Incarnate Word. Scott, who had 14 rebounds at Saint Mary’s, has played in only six games. He hasn’t played in 10 of the last 11. Wicks has played in only 10 games and hasn’t seen action since Dec. 29 at Army.

In the meantime, UTSA will soldier forward in conference play, led by a smallish lineup comprised of Spears, Marcus Millender, Damari Monsanto, Raekwon Horton and Jo Smith.

David Hermes has been starting at center, with Smith coming in off the bench. Six-foot-five freshman Baboucarr Njie, Mo’s younger brother, also has been playing off the bench. Naz Mahmoud is getting spot duty, too, as the eighth man.

Not a great team, at the moment, but certainly a fun team worth watching.

Records

UTSA 9-10, 3-4
FAU 10-10, 3-4

Coming up

UTSA at FAU, Wednesday, 6 p.m.
UTSA at North Texas, Saturday, 5 p.m.
Tulane at UTSA, Feb. 5, 7 p.m.
East Carolina at UTSA, Feb. 8, 7 p.m.

UTSA men surge in the last minute to down Temple, 88-79

Primo Spears. UTSA beat Temple 88-79 in American Athletic Conference men's basketball on Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Guard Primo Spears scored six of his 20 points in the final minute and 20 seconds to solidify UTSA’s 88-79 victory over the Temple Owls. – Photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The UTSA Roadrunners showed both resilience and resolve in the last one minute and 20 seconds, forcing two key turnovers and holding the Temple Owls to two free throws in claiming an 88-79 victory Saturday at the Convocation Center.

Holding on precariously to a one-point lead, UTSA outscored Temple 10-2 down the stretch for perhaps its biggest win in American Athletic Conference play this season.

Austin Claunch. UTSA beat Temple 88-79 in American Athletic Conference men's basketball on Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA coach Austin Claunch praised his team’s ‘grit’ in delivering the first victory in school history over the Temple Owls, who rank sixth all time in NCAA Division I with 2,005 wins. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Highlighting the 80-second surge were Primo Spears, who hit a jumper and sank four free throws, and also Damari Monsanto and Jo Smith, who came up with deflections to blunt two Temple possessions.

Spears and Raekwon Horton scored 20 points apiece to lead five Roadrunners in double figures. Marcus Millender added 18 and Monsanto contributed 17, hitting five of UTSA’s 14 three-point field goals. Smith had 10 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks.

“This is a huge win, not just to kind of keep us in the race, but also, I have a ton of respect for coach (Adam) Fisher and Temple,” UTSA coach Austin Claunch said. “I’m pretty sure I’m right on this but I think they have the seventh most wins in college basketball history, so this is an incredible win for our program and for UTSA.”

According to the school’s pre-game information packet, Temple is now sixth on the victory list. Kentucky leads Division I men’s programs with 2,411, followed by Kansas (2,407), North Carolina (2,383), Duke (2,314), UCLA (2,018) and Temple (2,005).

The Owls came into San Antonio with an AAC victory over Memphis, the league’s preseason favorite, and they were one game out of first place.

“Again, we have a ton of respect for Temple,” Claunch said. “They’ve started off really well this year and they’re going to continue to win a lot of games. For us, this is a really hard stretch for us — two really hard opponents coming into this one where we lost close games.”

Damari Monsanto. UTSA beat Temple 88-79 in American Athletic Conference men's basketball on Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Damari Monsanto hit five shots from behind the 3-point arc en route to 17 points and also made a key deflection to force a turnover in the last minute of the game. – Photo by Joe Alexander

A week ago today, the Roadrunners rallied late to within single digits of the North Texas Mean Green, only to fall 72-57 at home. Last Tuesday, they had a shot to tie on the final possession but lost in Birmingham to the UAB Blazers, 81-78.

Claunch said he “loved” how the Roadrunners started against the Owls. They jumped all over the visitors with defensive pressure and three-point shooting, building leads as large as 16 points three times in the first seven minutes.

After Temple rallied in the second half, it looked as if the Owls might overtake the short-handed Roadrunners, who were playing without starting guard Tai’Reon Joseph for the second straight game. Also, they’ve been without two post players for weeks, leaving them thin in the frontcourt.

Still, they found a way. “Just a gritty, tough win,” Claunch said.

Jamal Mashburn Jr. scored 10 of his team-high 20 points in the second half. The son of a former NBA star of the same name finished one point off his season scoring average. Forward Steve Settle produced 17 points and Zion Stanford 17. Point guard Quante Berry had 10 points and three assists.

Records

Temple 12-8, 4-3
UTSA 9-10, 3-4

Coming up

UTSA at Florida Atlantic, Wednesday, 6 p.m.
UTSA at North Texas, Saturday, Feb. 1, 5 p.m.

Notable

The win was UTSA’s first all time against Temple. In four meeting, the Roadrunners are now 1-3 against the Owls. Together in the same conference for the first time last season, the Owls won all three, including one in Philadelphia, one at the Convo in San Antonio and one at the AAC tournament in Fort Worth.

First half

Propelled by lights-out shooting from Raekwon Horton, Primo Spears and Marcus Millender, the UTSA Roadrunners raced to a 16-point lead in the first seven minutes and then hung on at the end to take a 43-35 advantage into the break.

Marcus Millender. UTSA beat Temple 88-79 in American Athletic Conference men's basketball on Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Roadrunners sophomore Marcus Millender knocked down six of nine shots from the field, scored 18 points and passed for six assists against the Owls. – Photo by Joe Alexander

When Spears nailed a three pointer from the right wing with 12:45 left, the Roadrunners had constructed a 28-12 lead. Horton had scored 11 points in the spree.

The UTSA offense was cooking at that point because of a frenetic defensive effort and a fast pace. As the game slowed more to Temple’s preferred pace, the Owls started climbing back in the game.

Temple closed a 21-10 run with a Shane Dezonie jumper, pulling the visitors to within five. UTSA responded with a 5-2 mini-surge in the final minute.

Monsanto buried a three — the Roadrunners’ eighth of the half — and Millender finished with a driving finger roll in traffic at the buzzer.

For the half, Horton had 15 points and Millender 10 for the Roadrunners. Spears, who made three of the team’s 3-pointers, had nine. The Owls were led by Mashburn, who scored 10, including two of two from long distance.

Pre-game

UTSA guard Tai’Reon Joseph did not play for the second straight game. Reserve forward Skylar Wicks also apparently was not in the arena. A spokesman said neither Joseph nor Wicks were available, increasing to five the number of scholarship athletes who didn’t play.

Forwards Mo Njie (foot injury), guard Paul Lewis (foot) and Jaquan Scott (personal reasons) are the other three.

Lewis has been out for most of the season and Scott and Njie most of the last three weeks. On top of all that, Spears suffered an injury in practice on Friday and did not come out for the early phase of pre-game warm ups.

Raekwon Horton. UTSA beat Temple 88-79 in American Athletic Conference men's basketball on Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Raekwon Horton set the tone for the Roadrunners, scoring 11 of his 20 points in the first five minutes of the game. – Photo by Joe .Alexander

Jonnivius Smith. UTSA beat Temple 88-79 in American Athletic Conference men's basketball on Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Jonnivius Smith got a hand on an inbounds pass and forced a turnover in the last minute to spark a 10-2 UTSA surge. Smith also came up big with 10 points and 10 rebounds. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Mashburn-led Temple Owls arrive to test the UTSA men

Damari Monsanto. UTSA men's basketball lost to Tulsa 82-77 in American Athletic Conference action on Monday, Jan. 7, 2024, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Damari Monsanto is coming off one of his best games of the season, a 21-point effort in which he hit six 3-point shots at UAB. – File photo by Joe Alexander

Editor’s note: UTSA guard Tai’Reon Joseph will not play for the second straight game.

With 15 minutes remaining before tipoff, Joseph is on the side in sweats and not on the floor warming up for the Roadrunners. Joseph, averaging 11.2 points in nine games this season, scored 19 at home against North Texas on Jan. 18 and then did not play at UAB on Tuesday.

Reserve forward Skylar Wicks also isn’t in the arena. A spokesman said neither Joseph nor Wicks are available, increasing to five the number of scholarship athletes who aren’t playing. Forwards Mo Njie (foot injury), guard Paul Lewis (foot) and Jaquan Scott (personal reasons) are the other three.

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The schedule doesn’t get any easier for the UTSA men’s basketball team. Hoping to regain traction in the American Athletic Conference race after two straight losses, the Roadrunners will host the Temple Owls Saturday at 3 p.m. at the Convocation Center.

Temple, featuring high-scoring guard Jamal Mashburn, Jr., will be the third straight AAC contender that UTSA has faced in the past eight days.

On Jan. 18, UTSA had won two straight and was looking to get another boost with a home game against the North Texas Mean Green. But North Texas had other ideas, burying UTSA by 22 points at halftime en route to a 72-57 victory.

Traveling to Alabama at mid-week, the Roadrunners shot the basketball much better and had a chance at the end, but couldn’t make a play in the final seconds in an 81-78 loss to the UAB Blazers Tuesday night.

Both the Mean Green and the Blazers are currently tied for first place in the AAC. Now, in comes the Adam Fisher-coached Owls, one game out of first. Roadrunners coach Austin Claunch said he knows his team needs to improve defensively.

“We’re not happy with being 2-4 at this point,” he said. “But at the same time, we want to be playing our best ball come February, going into March. It’s a long season. There’s a lot of games left.”

Records

Temple 12-7, 4-2
UTSA 8-10, 2-4

Coming up

Temple at UTSA, Saturday, 3 p.m.
UTSA at Florida Atlantic, Wednesday, 6 p.m.
UTSA at North Texas, Feb. 1, 5 p.m.

Notable

The Roadrunners have been good in some ways defensively, averaging a league-best 9.7 steals and 15.6 forced turnovers. But, at the same time, they rank last in opponent field goal percentage at (47.0) and 11th out of 13 teams in opponent three-point percentage (36.8).

With a couple of their big men out of the lineup, they’re also last in defensive rebounding and rebounding margin. Even with their problems, they have been hard to handle when they’re pressing and forcing mistakes and getting out in transition.

Guards Primo Spears, Marcus Millender and Tai’Reon Joseph and forwards Raekwon Horton and Damari Monsanto can all score in bunches in a fast-paced game. Six-foot-nine forward Jo Smith is also having a good year as a rebounder and rim protector, though he does need help.

UTSA women hear the roar of the home crowd en route to their 10th straight win

Nina De Leon Negron. UTSA beat Tulsa 64-53 in American Athletic Conference women's basketball at the Convocation Center on Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Point guard Nina De Leon Negron, wearing the gold chain awarded for her impact in a home victory over Tulsa, says the UTSA Roadrunners remain focused on ‘the ultimate goal’ of a conference championship.- Photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Once the UTSA women felt the rush of adrenaline and then heard the roar of their own fans during a third-quarter outburst Wednesday night, it was all over for the Tulsa Golden Hurricane.

Point guard Nina De Leon Negron produced 19 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists as the Roadrunners won their 10th straight game, holding off the Golden Hurricane 64-53 at the Convocation Center.

Idara Udo. UTSA beat Tulsa 64-53 in American Athletic Conference women's basketball at the Convocation Center on Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Idara Udo (left) helped spark a 15-2 UTSA run in the third quarter. – Photo by Joe Alexander

An announced crowd of 1,345 watched as Idara Udo contributed 16 points and eight rebounds for the Roadrunners, who improved to 17-2 on the season and to 8-0 in the American Athletic Conference.

Udo, a sophomore from Plano, also had a couple of steals and two blocked shots. AAC player of the year candidate Jordyn Jenkins, who took a spill at the end of the third quarter and came out of the game, did not play in the fourth.

The Roadrunners’ star power forward, who leads the conference in scoring, finished with seven points and five rebounds in 25 minutes.

Senior guard Delanie Crawford, another AAC postseason honors candidate, led Tulsa with 17 points. In doing so, she set the school record for three pointers in her career. Crawford hit three of seven from deep.

With the victory, UTSA kept its name alive in the postseason conversation, as it’s now one of only 18 teams in the nation with two or fewer losses. The list was trimmed by one when Minnesota lost at home to Michigan and fell to 17-3.

Additionally, UTSA extended its homecourt winning streak to 11 dating back to last season, which ties a school record. The Roadrunners are 8-0 in the Convo in what is evolving into a magical run of success in 2024-25.

“Super proud of the team (for) just holding court in the Convo and fighting through a little adversity — foul trouble, you know, shots not going in tonight the way we would expect them to go in,” UTSA coach Karen Aston said. “I mean, we’ve made a lot of the shots we missed tonight.

Delanie Crawford. UTSA beat Tulsa 64-53 in American Athletic Conference women's basketball at the Convocation Center on Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Tulsa senior guard Delanie Crawford (left) scored a team-high 17 points, but she was held to four after intermission by Maya Linton (middle) and others. – Photo by Joe Alexander.

“But, just being able to stay focused and not panic when they made a run. Just thought we were really composed tonight. Super proud of our team.”

Aston said a 15-2 UTSA run in the third quarter, fueled by a full-court press, was the difference in the game.

“I thought it was huge,” the coach said. “Our team, they were kind of looking at how to make a run, and we jumped in our press, got our blood flowing a little bit and then the crowd got excited. You know, that really was the difference in the game, that one run.”

During UTSA’s streak, the team is gradually starting to attract attention from more and more media outlets.

At least three local television stations were filming the action and one of them, KSAT, an ABC affiliate, has attended postgame media sessions the last two home games.

De Leon Negron, a graduate transfer from Incarnate Word, was asked in the postgame media session about the “outside noise,” or the hype, that has accompanied the team’s rise to first place in the AAC.

“I mean, every single time that we talk, even off the court, and we’re all together … we’re always talking about the end goal, which is winning conference,” De Leon Negron said. “Yeah, cool, we’re like 8-0 or whatever right now.

“But we always talk about just winning here (at the Convocation Center) and defending our home court, and just the ultimate goal.”

Aston fielded a postgame question about Jenkins, who fell to the court in late in the third quarter, received attention from trainers for the first six minutes in the fourth and then returned to the bench, seemingly ready to play, with a little more than four minutes left.

The coach was asked if she considered putting Jenkins back in the game, with UTSA leading by only four points at the time, and she said, “Honestly, I don’t know quite what happened (when she fell). But it’s a situation where you definitely don’t want to risk anything.

Sidney Love. UTSA beat Tulsa 64-53 in American Athletic Conference women's basketball at the Convocation Center on Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. - Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA guard Sidney Love.(middle) battles for a loose ball against Tulsa. – Photo by Joe Alexander

“Honestly, I don’t know if I can answer that. She probably didn’t need to go back in with (me) not really knowing what her status was. It was better to let her not play and then know that we had some time ahead of us before (we play again).”

The Roadrunners have six days to prepare before they play in Tampa on Jan. 29 against the South Florida Bulls, one of the strongest teams in the AAC.

Records

Tulsa 9-10, 3-4
UTSA 17-2, 8-0

Coming up

UTSA at South Florida, Jan. 29, 6 p.m.

Notable

UTSA’s 10-game winning streak ties for the second longest in the school’s 44-year women’s basketball history. The team won 10 straight previously in 1986-87 and again in 2007-08. UTSA set the school record of 13 straight wins in 2002-03. The 2002-03 team also won 11 straight at home.

First half

The Roadrunners struggled offensively against a tricky Tulsa zone defense, but they did enough on the other end and on the boards to take a 28-25 lead at halftime.

Gathering 10 offensive rebounds, the Roadrunners dominated in second-chance points with a 9-0 advantage. They also held a 14-0 spread on points in the paint.

Jordyn Jenkins. UTSA beat Tulsa 64-53 in American Athletic Conference women's basketball at the Convocation Center on Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Jordyn Jenkins scored seven points in 25 minutes before crashing to the court and coming out of the game late in the third period. After attention from the training staff, she returned to the bench seemingly ready to play with four minutes left. Coach Karen Aston elected not to play her down the stretch with a game at South Florida looming next Wednesday. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Lendeborg, UAB hold off UTSA 81-78 in Birmingham

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Multi-skilled center Yaxel Lendeborg produced 24 points and 14 rebounds Tuesday night as the UAB Blazers won their fifth straight, holding on at the end to beat the UTSA Roadrunners, 81-78, in Birmingham, Ala.

Lendeborg also had seven assists, three blocks and a steal to help hand the Roadrunners their second straight loss in the American Athletic Conference.

In the game played at Bartow Arena, the Blazers held a decided advantage in rebounding — 47-32 — and also made 26 out of 30 free throws. The Roadrunners stayed in the game by drilling 13 of 34 from 3-point distance.

Guard Primo Spears led the Roadrunners with 27 points and Damari Monsanto scored 21. Spears pulled UTSA to within one with a 15-footer at the free-throw line with 22 seconds left.

On the other end, Spears fouled Vasquez, who knocked down two free throws with 11.3 seconds remaining for the eventual final score.

A Monsanto attempted three pointer was off the mark with two seconds left, giving the victory to the Blazers, who played in the NCAA tournament last year after winning the AAC postseason title.

The Roadrunners played with seven players in the rotation as guard Tai’Reon Joseph was not in the game.

All in all, it was a good effort by the Roadrunners against the preseason conference favorites. Spears scored 18 in the second half and Monsanto 15. Monsanto hit six three pointers in the game.

“To win these games, got to make a couple more plays than we did,” UTSA coach Austin Claunch told the team’s radio broadcast. “Got to finish at the rim better than we did. I thought second-half (on the boards) was better. First half, I think their physicality caught us off guard a little bit.”

“But I was really proud of our group. We really fought. Cut that lead back to one … and then there at the end, that’s on me. Damari, I kind of put him in a tough spot. Thought we could get him on a little switch out and they guarded well.

“But our fight to stay in the game was really good.”

UAB coach Andy Kennedy told the ESPN television network afterward that it was not his team’s best effort but that he was proud of his players.

“These things have value,” he said. “They don’t have value on my blood pressure. But they have value for our team, because it makes us concentrate and grind through when you’re not at your best. So I’m proud of our guys for pulling it out.”

Kennedy said forward Christian Coleman did a good job forcing the miss at the end and “finally we were able to secure a rebound.”

The coach said Lendeborg is a special player. “I’m sure his stat line tonight was ridiculous,” Kennedy said. “It always is, and I’m always wanting more, because I think there’s more there. He’s an incredible kid, a great ambassador for our university.”

First half

The UAB Blazers surged into an early 11-point lead, only to see the UTSA Roadrunners come back with their fast pace and 3-point shooting. In the end, the Blazers took a 38-32 advantage into intermission.

Marcus Millender scored 10 points and Spears had nine for the Roadrunners.

For UAB, Lendeborg had nine points, eight rebounds and four assists. Forward Christian Coleman had eight points and four boards. Efrem Johnson scored eight.

The Blazers pounded the glass, winning the rebounding battle 29-14.

Records

UTSA 8-10, 2-4
UAB 12-7, 5-1

Coming up

Temple at UTSA, Saturday, 3 p.m.

Notable

Tai’Reon Joseph had 19 points Saturday in San Antonio when UTSA fell 72-57 to the North Texas Mean Green.

Joseph’s absence was one thing, but the Roadrunners also have been short-handed on the front line for weeks without 6-11 center Mo Njie (foot injury) and 6-8 forward Jaquan Scott (away from the team on a family matter). At one point late in the game Tuesday night, Mo Njie’s younger brother, 6-foot-5 freshman Baboucarr Njie, was guarding the 6-9, 240-pound Lendeborg.

Only two losses, and it’s Jan. 21? ‘Pretty amazing,’ Aston says

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

UTSA women’s basketball coach Karen Aston could not ask for much more than what her players have given at this point in the season.

Karen Aston. UTSA women's basketball beat UAB 67-56 in an American Athletic Conference game on Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Karen Aston’s UTSA Roadrunners (16-2) will take a nine-game winning streak into a Wednesday night home game against Tulsa. – File photo by Joe Alexander

The Roadrunners, at 16-2, have emerged as one of only 19 teams in the nation in NCAA Division I that have lost two or fewer games over the first two and a half months.

“I think it’s pretty amazing,” Aston said Tuesday. “I really do. I think the amount of work that our staff and players have put into what I call, a product, you know, a product that the community can be proud of, a product that UTSA can be proud of, I think it is absolutely incredible where we are today.”

From November, through December and into the first three weeks of January, most of the big news around the team has centered on the winning streaks.

They won seven straight last fall. Now, they’ve won nine in a row leading into Wednesday night’s home game against Tulsa.

One more victory and the Roadrunners will have tied for the second-longest streak in school history, trailing only the record of 13 set in the 2002-03 season.

But what jumped out over the weekend was the dwindling number of teams around the nation that have lost two or fewer games. After Saturday night, the number was 20.

Now it’s down to 19, after Tennessee lost to Vanderbilt in Nashville on Sunday. Twelve of the 19 teams on the list play in Power 4 conferences — in the SEC, the Big Ten, the ACC or the Big 12 — and one more — Connecticut — plays in the basketball hotbed of the Big East.

UTSA, meanwhile, remains as one of only six squads in the nation at the sub-power conference level that have two or fewer losses, with the others being Montana State (17-2), Grand Canyon (17-2), Quinnipiac (15-2), Buffalo (15-2) and Harvard (14-2).

What does this mean in UTSA’s quest to reach the 68-team NCAA tournament?

The speculation is already starting to percolate, as the team is rated 65th in the nation today on the NET national ratings system. Moreover, Charlie Creme’s tournament projection at ESPN.com has the Roadrunners making the field and slotted in as a No. 12 seed.

Then again, as Aston said recently, it’s way too early to guess what might happen. It seems Creme thinks UTSA will win the AAC tournament, which would yield the conference’s NCAA automatic bid. But if they fail to win it, then their chances are greatly diminished.

It’s just not certain that the Roadrunners could do enough between now and, say, a runner-up finish in Fort Worth, to secure what would be an at-large NCAA berth. On top of all that, they have teams like Tulsa coming at them nightly, trying to knock them off.

“There’s so much more work to be done,” Aston said Tuesday. “You don’t want to rest on your laurels, so to say, and be happy with where you are. I’m proud. Really, really proud. I think the challenge is just to stay focused and stay humble.

“I don’t even have to talk about it … They have a goal. They understand what they’re trying to get accomplished. So I think they’re staying pretty grounded with the ‘next game’ mentality. Because of our leadership, I wouldn’t expect it to be any different.”

With that being said, Aston continued, “You can’t get around the acknowledgment that it’s pretty amazing what we’ve accomplished so far, over the last four years.”

Records

Tulsa 9-9, 3-3
UTSA 16-2, 7-0

Coming up

Tulsa at UTSA, Wednesday, 6:30 p.m.

Two losses or less

Here is the list of teams with two losses or less in NCAA Division I women’s basketball:

x-LSU 20-0
x-UCLA 18-0
x-TCU 19-1
x-Kansas State 19-1
x-South Carolina 18-1
x-Ohio State 17-1
x-USC 17-1
x-Kentucky 16-1
x-Texas 18-2
y-Connecticut 17-2
x-Minnesota 17-2
z-Montana State 17-2
z-Grand Canyon 17-2
x-Notre Dame 16-2
x-Maryland 16-2
z-UTSA 16-2
z-Quinnipiac 15-2
z-Buffalo 15-2
z-Harvard 14-2

x-Teams from Power 4 conferences
y-Teams from the Big East
z-Teams from non-Power 4 conferences