Category Archives: College basketball

East Carolina men survive hot-shooting UTSA to win 96-89 in overtime

Posted on by
Reply

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The East Carolina Pirates made four straight defensive stops, leading to eight points in a row, as they broke open a hotly-contested tie game and defeated the UTSA Roadrunners 96-89 in overtime Sunday at Greenville, N.C.

It was the sixth straight loss for UTSA going down the stretch of the regular season in the American Athletic Conference.

Records

UTSA 10-17, 4-11
East Carolina 16-12, 8-7

How it happened

The Roadrunners played and shot the ball well for most of the night. They built a nine-point lead with 13:34 left in regulation. But they couldn’t make a few plays on the offensive end to close the second half, and the game went to overtime.

Once there, the Roadrunners continued to carry the fight to the Pirates, who were playing in their home at Minges Coliseum. UTSA’s Damari Monsanto quieted the crowd by knocking down a three-point shot with 3:08 remaining, tying the score, 86-86.

From there, East Carolina ratcheted up its defense behind Jayshayne Woodard, turning away UTSA without points on four possessions in a row.

On the other end, the Pirates converted with RJ Felton scoring on a drive to start a decisive 8-0 run. After Cam Hayes hit two free throws, Jordan Riley sank a 12 foot jumper.

Woodard, who made a steal and blocked a shot on the defensive end to kick start the rally, added a dunk with 39 seconds left to make it 94-86 with 39 seconds left.

UTSA couldn’t get any closer than five the rest of the way.

Another heartbreaker

For the Roadrunners, it was another heartbreaker in a late-season swoon that’s been marked by lost leads and lost games. This one was at least their fifth conference loss after leading by nine or more points in the second half. In their previous five setbacks, all came by five points or less.

East Carolina was responsible for one of them in an 80-79 victory at UTSA on Feb. 8. Now, the Pirates have swept the two-game series in contests that came down to only a few possessions each time.

On the offensive end, the Roadrunners played well, shooting 47 percent from the field and hitting at a 48 percent clip from three (13 of 27).

Guard Primo Spears contributed 24 points and seven assists. Marcus Millender scored 21 with five rebounds and four assists.

Monsanto and Tai’Reon Joseph both reached double figures, as well. Monsanto scored 14 and Joseph, who came out of the game momentarily in the first half with a cut near his eye, added 11.

Raekwon Horton returned after sitting out a game with an injury and worked hard at the end to slow down Felton, who led all scorers with 30 points. Riley had 17 points and Hayes 16.

For the Pirates, Felton hit 10 of 15 from the field and made all five of his attempts from the three-point line.

As a team, East Carolina shot 53 percent from the field and 56 percent from three against a UTSA defense that ranks near the bottom of the AAC in both of those categories.

For the season, the Roadrunners were allowing 46 percent field goal shooting and 35.8 percent from three leading into Sunday’s games.

Coming up

Rice at UTSA, Sunday, March 2, 5 p.m.
Memphis at UTSA, Tuesday, March 4, 6 p.m.
UTSA at Charlotte, Sunday, March 9, 3 p.m.

First half

The Roadrunners shot 59 percent from the field and withstood a scoring binge by guard RJ Felton to take a 39-38 lead on the Pirates.

In the opening 20 minutes of the game played at Minges Coliseum in Greenville, N.C., the momentum flowed back and forth with 11 lead changes and seven ties.

The Roadrunners trailed by as many as five at one juncture but always stayed competitive with a sweet flow on offense. They made 16 of 27 shots from the field and six of 11 from three.

UTSA women stoke conference title hopes with a 57-55 road victory at Rice

Posted on by
Reply

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Limited to only one point in the last five minutes and 48 seconds, the first-place UTSA Roadrunners women held on until the end of a dramatic finish, stoking their American Athletic Conference championship hopes with a 57-55 road victory Saturday over the Rice Owls.

Karen Aston. UTSA beat North Texas 54-52 in American Athletic Conference women's basketball on Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2025, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA coach Karen Aston traced her team’s struggle to score at the end against Rice to emotions associated with being in the thick of a race for a conference title. – File photo by Joe Alexander

Rice’s Dominique Ennis misfired on an open-look, three-point attempt at the buzzer, which sent UTSA players into celebration on the court with their sixth straight win and their 23rd overall, which ties for second most in a season in the program’s 44-year history.

By hanging on, UTSA (23-3, 14-1) also maintained a one-game lead on the South Florida Bulls (20-8, 13-2) in the AAC’s regular-season title race. South Florida played at home in Tampa and won its ninth straight by beating Memphis, 80-70. Sammie Puisis led the Bulls with 34 points.

The Roadrunners have three games remaining, including a road game Tuesday in New Orleans against the Tulane Green Wave, before the start of the AAC tournament. After beating Rice, the Roadrunners moved into a tie with the 2007-08 UTSA team with 23 wins.

If they can beat the Green Wave, they would tie the 2008-09 team for the school record of 24. Both of those squads, coached by the late Rae Rippetoe-Blair and led by point guard Monica Gibbs, won Southland Conference postseason titles and played in the NCAA tournament.

After the Rice game, UTSA coach Karen Aston put on the headset at press row and talked to radio voice Neal Raphael. She sounded relieved. “It’s hard to win on the road, that’s the first thing I’ll say,” Aston said.

With Jordyn Jenkins hitting five of her first six shots, the Roadrunners started fast, storming to a 22-6 lead near the end of the first quarter.

But as the game went on, Rice defended Jenkins better, and both Jenkins and Idara Udo played their way into foul trouble. To make matters more troubling, Ennis started to play well, hitting shots from all angles and distances.

In the last six minutes, the Owls kept grinding away and nearly knocked off off the conference leaders. With 5:48 remaining, Roadrunners guard Nina De Leon Negron hit a three-point basket. The shot went down and gave UTSA a 56-49 lead.

From there, by unofficial count, UTSA missed five field goal attempts and committed two turnovers. The Owls, meanwhile, called on Victoria Flores for a layup. Ennis followed with a three with 2:45 remaining, pulling Rice to within 56-53.

Going into the last half minute, the Owls looked to be the aggressor. With Ennis floating on the perimeter, a danger to score from anywhere, the ball went inside to forward Sussy Ngulefac, who hit from close range. UTSA’s lead was down to one.

On the ensuing inbounds with 15 seconds left, De Leon Negron caught the pass but was tied up, with the possession going to Rice. Ennis, however, misfired from about 13 feet with Maya Linton and Udo coming out to contest.

The defensive stop gave UTSA a last chance with the ball, and the Roadrunners eked one point out of it on a De Leon Negron free throw. She hit it with a second left for the 57-55 lead.

After Rice rebounded De Leon Negron’s next free throw, a miss, the home team had a chance, with the Owls getting to advance the ball to its own end of the court. On an inbounds play, Ennis popped open and had a look at the basket, but she missed off the rim.

“It was Senior Day for these guys (the Owls) and they were jockeying for position as are we, and I thought that Rice played their hearts out. I thought we did, too,” Aston said in an interview on The Bull, on the postgame radio show. “We just … you know, maybe we played not to lose there toward the end of the game.”

Aston had more to say:

“We made a lot of mistakes — defensively, offensively — just uncharacteristic (of our team). Just not being able to listen (was a factor). It was loud in here. We just couldn’t process some of the things we were talking about in timeouts.

“(It was) emotional.

“That’s just where this team is right now,” the coach said. “They want to win so bad that they’re having trouble just relaxing. You know, that’s what happens when you’ve never won anything before, and you’re trying really hard to do it. You’re just trying to find ways to get through it, and we did that.”

UTSA is 16-1 in its last 17 games, with the only loss coming on Jan. 29 at South Florida, 75-63. Jenkins sat out against South Florida with an injury, the only game she hasn’t played this season.

Records

UTSA 23-3, 14-1
Rice 13-14, 6-9

Coming up

UTSA at Tulane (16-10, 9-6), Tuesday, 6:30 p.m.
FAU at UTSA, Saturday, March 1, noon
UTSA at East Carolina, Tuesday, March 4, 5 p.m.

AAC leaders

UTSA 14-1, 23-3
South Florida 13-2, 20-8
North Texas 12-3, 20-7

Notable

UTSA — The Roadrunners are trying to win their first regular-season title since Rae Rippetoe-Blair’s 2008-09 team tied UT Arlington for the Southland Conference crown at 14-2. UTSA went on to win the SLC postseason championship and lost to No. 2-seed Baylor in the NCAA first round, finishing 24-9.

Coach Karen Aston, in her 17th year as an NCAA Division I head coach, has won 346 games. She has a winning percentage of almost 63 percent and has led her teams to seven NCAA tournaments, including four trips to the Sweet 16 and one to the Elite Eight. But she is still looking for her first regular-season title.

Forward Jordyn Jenkins led UTSA with 19 points on six of 13 shooting. Idara Udo, who has had three double doubles recently, finished with eight points and four rebounds in 28 minutes. Both Jenkins and Udo were limited with four fouls. Forward Cheyenne Rowe came off the bench for 10 points on four of seven. Nina De Leon Negron had four points, five rebounds and seven assists. She also contributed four steals.

Rice — Dominique Ennis had 21 points, five rebounds and four assists. She went nine of 23 from the field and made three three-point shots. Forward Sussy Ngulefac, who scored 16 against the Roadrunners in San Antonio in January, didn’t touch the ball much in the first half and was held to 11. Malia Fisher, Rice’s other major scoring threat, scored only four. Hailey Adams, a Rice sophomore from San Antonio’s Clark High School, had seven points and 12 rebounds.

First half

UTSA surged behind the hot shooting of forward Jordyn Jenkins into a 16-point lead in the first quarter, only to see the Rice Owls rally with a focused defensive effort. In the end, the Roadrunners took a 36-27 lead into intermission.

Both teams entered the game in Houston at Tudor Fieldhouse with different motivations. The Roadrunners were looking to protect a one-game lead in the American Athletic Conference, while the Owls wanted to win on Senior Day.

The Owls entered the game with a 10-3 record at home this season.

Tulane update

The Green Wave (16-10 on the season and to 9-6 in the AAC) celebrated Senior Night on Saturday with a 68-64 home victory over Wichita State.

Sherese Pittman recorded her sixth double-double with 17 points and 16 rebounds and Victoria Keenan added 16 on four 3-pointers. Kyren Whittington contributed 12 points.

Amira Mabry, a Tulane junior from San Antonio area Converse Judson High School, was the team’s top rebounder with 11. Freshman Kendall Sneed posted six assists and four steals.

First-place UTSA women hit ‘the final stretch’ in American Athletic Conference title race

Posted on by
Reply

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

In long-distance races in track and field, an official rings a bell with one lap to go as runners churn for the finish.

The leader of the pack has an advantage, but everyone with a competitive heart believes they can still win.

Jordyn Jenkins. UTSA beat East Carolina 60-46 at the Convocation Center on Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025, in American Athletic Conference women's basketball. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Jordyn Jenkins leads the AAC in scoring at 18.5 points per game. She also ranks fourth in field goal percentage at 47.2. – File photo by Joe Alexander

Well, the bell is ringing, so to speak, for the UTSA women’s basketball team and everyone chasing them in the race for the American Athletic Conference regular-season title.

The first-place Roadrunners (22-3 overall, 13-1 AAC) lead in the standings by one game over the South Florida Bulls and by two over the North Texas Mean Green with four to play.

Of UTSA’s last remaining games, three are on the road, including one this afternoon in Houston against the Rice Owls.

Even though a regular-season title doesn’t guarantee a coveted NCAA berth, UTSA forward Idara Udo says it’s “really important” for the Roadrunners to win it.

“That was one of our goals for the season,” she said. “So I think that with four games left, it’s kind of like the final stretch, like, the last lap in the race.”

Both South Florida (19-8, 12-2) and North Texas (19-7, 11-3) have two at home and two on the road remaining.

South Florida has won eight in a row leading into today’s home game against Memphis, while North Texas has won three straight going into a road test today at East Carolina.

UTSA coach Karen Aston was asked during her weekly session with the media on Monday how she liked her team’s chances to finish first.

Hailey Adams. 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

Hailey Adams, a Rice sophomore from San Antonio Clark High School wearing No. 22, averages 7.0 points and 7.2 rebounds for the Owls. – File photo by Joe Alexander

“Well, we control our own destiny at this point, as far as the fact that we are one game up right now,” Aston said. “But there’s just a lot of basketball to play. Take the road games that are never easy. So we just have to take the standard approach that we’ve made since Day 1, which is one game at a time.

“Rice is the next opponent and there’s really not much to worry about other than Rice right now.”

The Roadrunners had a tough time with the Owls before beating them 67-58 in San Antonio on Jan. 8. Rice led by nine in the second quarter and by six with 7:54 remaining, only to see UTSA explode past them in the final minutes.

Records

UTSA 22-3, 13-1
Rice 13-13, 6-8

Coming up

UTSA at Rice, Saturday, 4 p.m.
UTSA at Tulane, Tuesday, 6:30 p.m.
FAU at UTSA, Saturday, March 1, noon
UTSA at East Carolina, Tuesday, March 4, 5 p.m.

South Florida stages huge second-half rally to down UTSA, 78-73

Posted on by
Reply
Damari Monsanto. South Florida beat UTSA 78-73 in American Athletic Conference men's basketball on Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Guard Damari Monsanto scored 22 points and made seven 3-pointers for UTSA, but it wasn’t enough as South Florida rallied from 20 points down to win 78-73. — Photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Trailing by 20 points with nine minutes remaining, the South Florida Bulls staged a dramatic rally to beat the UTSA Roadrunners 78-73 Wednesday night at the Convocation Center.

The Bulls found themselves down 65-45 with 9:05 remaining when things started to unravel for the Roadrunners.

Austin Claunch. South Florida beat UTSA 78-73 in American Athletic Conference men's basketball on Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Austin Claunch’s UTSA Roadrunners fell to 10-16 on the season and 4-10 in the American Athletic Conference. UTSA leads Rice and Charlotte, both 3-11 in the AAC and tied for last in the 13-team league. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Guard Jimmie Williams hit two consecutive three-point baskets to start the comeback, and it didn’t end until South Florida had outscored UTSA 33-8 in the last 8:49 of the game.

With the win, the Bulls (13-14, 6-8) snapped a three-game losing streak and handed the Roadrunners their season-high fifth straight loss.

The setback may prove costly for the Roadrunners (10-16, 4-10) as they now face the possibility of finishing 12th or 13th in the American Athletic Conference, which would force them to play on opening day of the AAC tournament.

If that is the case, UTSA would need to win five games in five days to win the title.

Such a streak of success seems almost unimaginable at the moment, with the Roadrunners having lost four home games in AAC play since early January after holding leads of nine or more points in the second half.

The Roadrunners’ four-game trail of tears started on Jan. 7 with an 82-77 setback to Tulsa. Their frustrations continued with one-point losses to Tulane on Feb. 5 and to East Carolina on Feb. 8.

UTSA led by 16 with 17 minutes left against Tulsa. In the other two, they suffered excruciating collapses in the final few minutes.

East Carolina pulled it out in the last 48 seconds, forcing a couple of turnovers and claiming an 80-79 victory on a CJ Walker free-throw line jumper with four ticks on the clock to play.

In the latest UTSA heartbreak, Williams, a 6-5 redshirt sophomore from Solon, Ohio, led the charge for South Florida. He scored 12 of his team-high 16 points in the last nine minutes.

South Florida coach Ben Fletcher. South Florida beat UTSA 78-73 in American Athletic Conference men's basketball on Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

South Florida interim head coach Ben Fletcher watched as his team rallied from 20 points down to win for the team’s biggest comeback of the season. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Capping his outburst, Williams sank an acrobatic runner from 12 feet that tied the game 71-all with 49.6 seconds left.

Roadrunners coach Austin Claunch, addressing the media afterward, expressed frustration at another game that he thought his team should have won.

Once again, his attacking offense became stagnant, tentative and mistake-prone with turnovers, and then his defense, under pressure, failed to make stops at key moments.

Another major factor that helped South Florida was an injury that sidelined senior forward Raekwon Horton, who didn’t play after averaging 17 points and shooting better than 50 percent from the field over the past five games.

“As a head coach, man, I got to find a way to help our guys finish the games,” Claunch said. “You know, that’s our fourth loss, I think, where we’ve had at least a nine-point lead or something at home. Obviously this was our biggest one.

“I haven’t watched it yet (on film). It’s still fresh. But we’ve got to find a way obviously to slow their run at the end of the game and just manufacture a few baskets.”

During Claunch’s session with the media, the 35-year-old, first-year UTSA coach paused the self-analysis for a moment and congratulated the Bulls, who have worked their way back from a real-life tragedy to find hope for success on the court leading into the last few weeks.

Marcus Millender. South Florida beat UTSA 78-73 in American Athletic Conference men's basketball on Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

USA guard Marcus Millender produced 11 points, four assists and four steals for the Roadrunners. — Photo by Joe Alexander

In late October, the Bulls were stunned when their head coach, Amir Abdur-Rahim, died after suffering complications from a medical procedure. The coach of the Bulls’ 2023-24 AAC regular-season champions was 43.

“(I want to) touch on Coach Abdur-Rahim and what he’s meant to this league and this basketball community,” Claunch said. “To see them still fighting and playing the way they’re playing, certainly says a lot about the culture that he instilled — not just as a coach but as a man and as a leader.

“So, again, my condolences to their family again and their entire community. We’re thinking about them at UTSA.”

South Florida interim coach Ben Fletcher said outside the visitors’ dressing room that the comeback victory “was huge” for his coaching staff and his players.

“We’re getting closer to March,” he said. “Both teams have been struggling. They’re playing in some really close games. (This) just gives you confidence, especially when you can come on the road and get one against a really good UTSA team.”

The 20-point comeback to victory was the biggest that the Bulls have executed this season.

“You know, our guys needed some confidence,” Fletcher said. “We’d been playing in some close games and we let a few get away that we thought we should have won. So it’s always big to kind of bounce back.”

Primo Spears. South Florida beat UTSA 78-73 in American Athletic Conference men's basketball on Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Primo Spears connected on three 3-point shots and scored 18 points. He finished with five of 18 shooting from the field. — Photo by Joe Alexander

Fletcher agreed with Claunch’s analysis, that the victory underscored the type of culture that had been established by Abdur-Rahim.

“Absolutely,” Fletcher said. “It’s crazy. The way it happened today, it basically happened like that last year, too. They had gotten up on us a few points in that second half. Very similar. I don’t think it was 20, but they did a really good job.

“They shot the ball well to start the second half and then we went small (with our lineup) kind of the same way (we did tonight).”

The UTSA offense and a few individuals had their moments, for sure. Guard Damari Monsanto scored a game-high 22 points. Monsanto, from Pembroke Pines, Fla., knocked down seven of the Roadrunners’ 15 three-point field goals.

In addition, guard Primo Spears had 18 points, six rebounds and four assists. He also had two steals. Marcus Millender had 11 points, four assists and four steals. Monsanto, Spears and Millender all played 38 minutes.

Tai’Reon Joseph, inserted in the starting lineup when it became known that Horton would need to sit out, also scored 11.

For South Florida, Williams led the way with 16 points on six of nine shooting, including two threes. Jamille Reynolds and Kobe Knox each scored 13 apiece. Guard Brandon Stroud scored 11 and pulled down 17 rebounds, including seven on the offensive glass. He also had four blocks and five steals.

Records

South Florida 13-14, 6-8
UTSA 10-16, 4-10

Coming up

UTSA at East Carolina, Sunday, 1 p.m.
Rice at UTSA, Sunday, March 2, 5 p.m.
Memphis at UTSA, Tuesday, March 4, 6 p.m.
UTSA at Charlotte, Sunday, March 9, 3 p.m.

First half

After playing lackluster basketball in the first half last weekend at Tulsa, UTSA came out with a more focused performance against South Florida.

South Florida assistant coach Griffin McHone. South Florida beat UTSA 78-73 in American Athletic Conference men's basketball on Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

South Florida assistant coach Griffin McHone played basketball locally at Boerne High School. He is the son of Boerne coach Kimble McHone and the grandson of former Spurs assistant and head coach Morris McHone. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Monsanto knocked down three of UTSA’s eight made three pointers before intermission as the Roadrunners took a 40-29 lead on the Bulls at intermission.

The Roadrunners hit eight of 19 from behind the arc in the half, with Spears and Millender helping out by making two apiece.

By consistently making shots from the perimeter, the Roadrunners hiked the lead to as many as 12 three times before Baboucarr Njie hit a free throw with 26 seconds left to make it 40-27.

South Florida center Jamille Reynolds followed in a shot with three seconds remaining for the final basket of the half. Reynolds led the Bulls with nine points.

For the Roadrunners, Spears scored 10 and Monsanto nine, while Joseph and Millender both had eight.

UTSA men looking for answers as they prepare to host South Florida

Posted on by
Reply

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

For the UTSA Roadrunners, it’s time to turn the page on a four-game losing streak. With five games left in the regular season, they know they need to start playing with more urgency as the American Athletic Conference tournament looms next month.

Austin Claunch. UTSA beat North Dakota 80-76 in non-conference men's basketball on Friday, Dec. 13, 2024, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Coach Austin Claunch’s UTSA Roadrunners will host the South Florida Bulls tonight at 7 at the Convocation Center. – File photo by Joe Alexander

The Roadrunners kick off the stretch run with a home game tonight against the South Florida Bulls, and UTSA coach Austin Claunch doesn’t want a repeat of their last game, when they lost concentration and allowed the Tulsa Golden Hurricane to run up a big lead before halftime.

UTSA rallied in the second half and nearly pulled out a victory, but the effort just wasn’t enough.

It came too late to prevent an 0-2 record on the road trip through Wichita State and Tulsa. Now, the Roadrunners (4-9 in the AAC) find themselves in 11th place in the AAC standings, a game behind Tulsa and South Florida (both 5-8).

“We had guys come in this morning, worked hard, shot well,” Claunch said on his Monday media session. “Certainly we wish we had more wins. That goes without saying. I thought the first half against Tulsa was the first time we’d sleep walked through a game in a long, long time. I don’t mean to say that, we weren’t playing hard, or whatever the case may be.

“But there were just some mental mistakes and just some lapses that we haven’t made in awhile. By a few of our older, better guys that have been playing a lot of minutes for us. Guys that should know better.

“So again, just a really bad start to the game. Haven’t had one of those (since) I would say against FAU (on Jan. 29, on the road) we got off to sort of a snoozer of a start. This one was kind of similar.

“But we’re always looking forward, whether it’s win or lose. At the end of the day, if we had won both games, we (still) wouldn’t be where we want to be. There’s a lot of work to be done. There’s still a lot to play for in these last five games to try to build some momentum as we go to Fort Worth.”

Records

South Florida 12-14, 5-8
UTSA 10-15, 4-9

Coming up

South Florida at UTSA, tonight at 7
UTSA at East Carolina, Sunday, 1 p.m.
Rice at UTSA, Sunday, March 2, 5 p.m.
Memphis at UTSA, Tuesday, March 4, 6 p.m.
UTSA at Charlotte, Sunday, March 9, 3 p.m.

AAC men’s tournament

March 12 – At the Super Pit, in Denton (first round).
March 13-16 – At Dickies Arena, in Fort Worth (second round, quarterfinals, semis and finals)

Honoring Amir Abdur-Rahim

UTSA coach Austin Claunch paid tribute to the late Amir Abdur-Rahim this week, talking about the 43-year-old South Florida basketball coach who passed away last fall, a few weeks before the opening of the college basketball season.

In January, the American Athletic Conference announced that it would create a postseason sportsmanship award in the coach’s name:

“The Amir Abdur-Rahim Sportsmanship Award will be presented annually to the men’s basketball student-athlete who, as determined by the league’s head coaches, best exemplifies the qualities of sportsmanship, fair play and leadership,” according to a news release from the conference.

Claunch said he honestly hasn’t given much thought to who on the Roadrunners he might nominate for it, but supports the idea wholeheartedly.

“This season is about Amir,” Claunch said. “It’s incredible the season they had last year, right? But again, when you hear people speak about him, certainly, that’s something I hope one day people speak about me in the same light. He was clearly an incredible leader, someone that just carried himself with incredible class and dignity.

“When I think about the award, there’s plenty of guys (deserving of it). But I haven’t thought too much about that. Again, this season is to honor Amir. Whoever wins that award certainly should feel that, it’s an award you shouldn’t take lightly. Something that you should understand … is named after an incredible man, and it means something.”

McHone’s homecoming

Second-year South Florida assistant coach Griffin McHone played his high school basketball for the Boerne Greyhounds. He played at Boerne under his father, Greyhounds coach Kimble McHone. Griffin is the grandson of longtime college and pro basketball coach Morris McHone, formerly the head coach of the San Antonio Spurs.

UTSA women win to clinch a top-four seed, double bye in American conference tournament

Posted on by
Reply
Idara Udo. UTSA beat Memphis 80-61 in American Athletic Conference women's basketball at the Convocation Center on Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Idara Udo produced 14 points and 13 rebounds in an 80-61 victory over the Memphis Tigers. Udo, a 6-foot-1 sophomore from Plano, has notched three double doubles with points and rebounds in the last four games. – Photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The UTSA Roadrunners broke away in the second half on Saturday to rout the Memphis Tigers, 80-61, winning their 22nd game of the season, extending their school-record homecourt winning streak to 15 and clinching a double bye in the American Athletic Conference tournament.

With the double bye, UTSA will bypass the first two days and start the tournament in the quarterfinals on March 10 in Fort Worth, needing only three wins in three days to win the title.

“First of all, I just want to say thanks to everyone that came out today,” UTSA coach Karen Aston said. “That’s what we’ve been saying repeatedly the last few home games. But it took the cake today. I thought they were really, really good and loud and excited about being here.”

Karen Aston. UTSA beat Memphis 80-61 in American Athletic Conference women's basketball at the Convocation Center on Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. - Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA coach Karen Aston applauded the marketing team and administrators for their work in helping to bring out a crowd of 1,523. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Officials announced the crowd at 1,523, the largest of the season.

“They’re still out there getting autographs,” Aston said in the postgame media session. “So, just kudos to everyone who is making that happen. Our marketing group. Our administration. I mean, there’s been a lot of effort in getting the community to pay attention to our team.”

Naturally, the resurgence in women’s basketball at UTSA can be traced most directly to the work of the coaches and the players, who have won more games than all but two other teams in the 44-year history of the program.

Their efforts have pushed the pace since Day 1 last summer. As a result, the first-place Roadrunners (22-3, 13-1) will have a chance in the last few weeks to win a conference regular-season title, even though the second-place South Florida Bulls (18-8, 11-2) seem determined to take it down to the wire.

UTSA plays three of its last four on the road, starting with a road game at Rice next Saturday. A regular-season crown doesn’t guarantee a berth in the NCAA tournament, which is the team’s ultimate goal, but it is something that the Roadrunners would like to accomplish.

“It’s really important,” UTSA center Idara Udo said. “That was one of our goals for the season. So I think that with four games left, it’s kind of like the final stretch, like, the last lap in the race.

Nina De Leon Negron. UTSA beat Memphis 80-61 in American Athletic Conference women's basketball at the Convocation Center on Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Nina De Leon Negron led the Roadrunners in scoring with 16 points. She also snared five rebounds and passed for six assists against only one turnover. – Photo by Joe Alexander

“Now more than ever, we’re just honed in on trying to get a ring from the conference, but also keeping our minds on the American tournament and the NCAA tournament.

“I think our team is always thinking one step ahead,” Udo continued. “So, I think we have our minds set, still locked in, in the moment, but our minds are on what’s ahead, as well.”

Trailing by 12 points at one juncture in the second quarter, the Roadrunners started to play better defense and pulled to within two at halftime. Clamping down further on the Tigers’ shooters in the second half, they turned it into a run-away.

On a day when Jordyn Jenkins spent much of her afternoon on the bench in foul trouble, guard Nina De Leon Negron led the Roadrunners with 16 points. Guard Aysia Proctor hit some big shots in the second half and finished with 15.

Udo contributed a double double with 14 points and 13 rebounds.

Guard Tanyuel Welch led the Tigers with 16 points and nine rebounds. Backcourt mate Tilly Boler scored 12 but was limited to five of 19 shooting from the field. Alasia Smith had 10 points and seven rebounds.

First half

Playing at a fast pace, the Memphis Tigers built a 12-point lead in the second quarter and withstood a UTSA rally in the last six minutes to take a 40-38 lead into the dressing room at intermission.

Jordyn Jenkins. UTSA beat Memphis 80-61 in American Athletic Conference women's basketball at the Convocation Center on Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. - Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA star Jordyn Jenkins scored eight points on a day when she picked up four fouls in 15 minutes. Jenkins played only six minutes in the second half when the Roadrunners blew out the Tigers, 42-21. – Photo by Joe Alexander

After the home team Roadrunners played even with the visitors in the first quarter, the Tigers broke from a 19-19 tie and forged a 14-2 run over a four-minute span.

Memphis scored nine straight points, a streak capped by a three pointer from forward Tamya Smith, to build a 33-21 advantage.

With Jordyn Jenkins on the bench in foul trouble, the Roadrunners came back. They authored a 17-4 run, highlighted by eight points from guard Aysia Proctor.

A Cheyenne Rowe layup tied the game 38-all with 43 seconds remaining. Tanyuel Welch hit a couple of free throws with 12.3 seconds left for the final points of the half.

Welch had 11 points and Tilly Boler 10 to lead the Tigers. Nina De Leon Negron had nine points and Proctor eight for the Roadrunners.

Records

Memphis 6-18, 4-9
UTSA 22-3, 13-1

Coming up

UTSA at Rice, Saturday, Feb. 22, 4 p.m.
UTSA at Tulane, Tuesday, Feb. 25, 6:30 p.m.
Florida Atlantic at UTSA, Saturday, March 1, noon.
UTSA at East Carolina, Tuesday, March 4, 5 p.m.
(End of regular season)

AAC tournament
At Dickies Arena, Fort Worth

March 8 – First round (at Denton): Game One, 13 seed vs. 12 seed, noon
(All remaining games at Dickies Arena, in Fort Worth)
March 9 – Second round: Game Two, 9 seed vs. 8 at noon; Game Three, 13 or 12 vs. 5 at 2 p.m.; Game Four, 10 vs. 7 at 6 p.m.; Game Five, 11 vs. 6 at 8 p.m.
March 10 — Quarterfinals: Game Six, Game Two winner vs. No. 1 seed, noon; Game Seven, Game Three winner vs. No. 4 seed, 2 p.m.; Game Eight, Game Four winner vs. No. 2 seed, 6 p.m.; Game Nine, Game Five winner vs. No. 3 seed, 8 p.m.
March 11 — Semifinals: Game 10, Game Six winner vs. Game Seven winner, 6 p.m.; Game 11, Game Eight winner vs. Game Nine winner, 8 p.m.
March 12 — Finals: Game 12, Game 10 winner vs. Game 11 winner, 6 p.m.

Aysia Proctor. UTSA beat Memphis 80-61 in American Athletic Conference women's basketball at the Convocation Center on Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Aysia Proctor, a UTSA sophomore from Clemens, matched the speed of the Memphis Tigers’ guards and scored 15 points off the bench. She scored eight in the second quarter to spark a rally. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Tulsa wins at home, 80-76, to hand the UTSA men their fourth straight loss

Posted on by
Reply

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Close losses are getting old for the UTSA men’s basketball team.

The Tulsa Golden Hurricane won a duel between teams battling for 10th place in the American Athletic Conference standings, building a 19-point lead late in the first half before holding on at the end for an 80-76 victory.

It was UTSA’s second straight loss on a two-game AAC road trip and its fourth overall, all by five points or less.

“In (the) last five games we’re going to really push ourselves and test ourselves,” first-year UTSA coach Austin Claunch told Andy Everett on the team’s postgame radio broadcast. “Obviously, we’ve had a tough little stretch. We’re close.

“And so, we’re frustrated obviously. We’ve been close, but that’s part of what this is all about. We’re going to keep fighting.”

With the win, the Golden Hurricane (5-8, 11-15) swept two games against the Roadrunners (4-9, 10-15) in the season series and seized control of ninth place in the AAC standings.

UTSA fell to 11th place, two games in the loss column behind Wichita State (14-10, 4-7). The Roadrunners have five games remaining, with the next one coming up Wednesday at home against South Florida.

Tulsa won the game in the first half when it held UTSA to 23 points on five for 25 shooting. While the Roadrunners were struggling, the Golden Hurricane were sizzling, shooting 60.7 percent en route to a 40-21 lead late.

The Hurricane entered halftime up 40-23.

In the second half, the Roadrunners made a good push, outscoring the Golden Hurricane 26-14 in the first nine minutes.

A three pointer by Primo Spears with 11:14 remaining brought the Roadrunners to within five at 54-49.

UTSA kept coming at Tulsa late, reducing the deficit to four twice, the last time at 8:41 when forward Horton, running off a Jo Smith defensive rebound, took a pass from Spears and sank a driving layup to make it 58-54.

From there, the Golden Hurricane pushed back, going off on a 9-2 run. At the end of the run, Dwon Odom sank a couple of free throws for Tulsa. Suddenly, the Golden Hurricane were in charge again, leading 67-56.

UTSA kept battling to the end, reducing an eight-point deficit to only three in the last minute. Spears hit a three to give the Roadrunners life, down 77-74, with 16 seconds left.

Willis, a guard who once played in San Antonio at the University of the Incarnate Word, hit three of four free throws down the stretch to seal it.

For Tulsa, Willis led in scoring with 19 points, including 11 in the second half, all on free throws. Forward Isaiah Barnes scored 18, contributing 10 in the first half on four of seven shooting, including a couple of threes. Odom and Jared Garcia scored 16 each.

Raekowon Horton had 20 points and five rebounds to lead the Roadrunners. Millender, one of the hottest offensive players in the conference through the end of last week, scored 19 but was limited to seven of 21 shooting.

The 5-foot-11 guard from Houston knocked down four three pointers, reaching four long-distance makes for the fourth time since Jan. 11. Spears scored 18 points, coming on strong in the second half with 15. Spears, the team’s leading scorer, finished three of seven from three.

Records

UTSA 10-15, 4-9
Tulsa 11-15, 5-8

Coming up

South Florida at UTSA, Wednesday, 7 p.m.
UTSA at East Carolina, Sunday, Feb. 23, 1 p.m.

UTSA women playing for high stakes today at home against Memphis

Posted on by
Reply
Karen Aston. UTSA beat Temple 70-61 on Saturday, Feb. 1, 2025, at the Convocation Center in American Athletic Conference women's basketball. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Coach Karen Aston’s American Athletic Conference-leading UTSA Roadrunners will shoot for their 15th straight win at home today. Tipoff against Memphis is at 2 p.m.

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Coach Karen Aston’s UTSA Roadrunners have always dreamed of playing in the NCAA tournament, but not until this season have they won enough games through the middle of February to be regarded as the favorite in their own conference to claim a coveted bid.

In the last two years, the Roadrunners have made enough noise to this point in the season that they entered the NCAA discussion. But never have they achieved so much with five games remaining in the regular season to claim status as the team to beat.

UTSA hopes to burnish its reputation even further today.

Winners of 21 of 24 games on the season and 14 of their last 15 overall, the first-place Roadrunners host the Memphis Tigers at 2 p.m., wondering in the back of their minds what it would really feel like to see the name of their school in the 68-team NCAA bracket next month.

On one hand, they are faced with the here and now. The Roadrunners nearly lost at Memphis last month, winning 70-68 with a frantic fourth-quarter rally, so they know how hard it will be to beat a team like this for the second time in 32 days.

Then again, as far as the rest of the world in NCAA Division I women’s basketball is concerned, UTSA is in the driver’s seat in the American Athletic Conference. According to ESPN, the Roadrunners are favored to claim the AAC’s automatic bid into the 68-team field.

But here’s where it gets complicated. There are two avenues into the NCAA bracket, the automatic and the at large bid. For UTSA, the automatic is the one avenue upon which it can go about its usual business and control its own destiny.

If they stay hot and keep winning, and they win the AAC tournament in Fort Worth next month, they get the auto bid and the ticket to the Big Dance. Anything less than that, however, it’s a slippery slope toward being left out.

For instance, if the Roadrunners win the regular season title, claim the No. 1 seed in the AAC tournament and then lose in the finals, their fate will be in the hands of an NCAA committee to decide if they are deserving of an at-large bid.

At the moment, if the ESPN analysis is correct, it appears the second-place South Florida Bulls might be the conference’s only hope of snagging one of the at-large spots. The Bulls are the only team in the American on a list of teams ranked just outside the field of 68. They’re ranked 73rd.

Earlier this week, Aston was asked if she was coaching her team as if she believed it needed to sweep to the AAC postseason title to earn its way into the NCAA tournament, and she declined to comment directly, implying that she might have something to say on that front in about 10 days.

So, stay tuned.

Records

Memphis 6-17, 4-8
UTSA 21-3, 12-1

Coming up

Memphis at UTSA, today, 2 p.m.
UTSA at Rice, Saturday, Feb. 22, 4 p.m.
UTSA at Tulane, Tuesday, Feb. 25, 6:30 p.m.
Florida Atlantic at UTSA, Saturday, March 1, noon.
UTSA at East Carolina, Tuesday, March 4, 5 p.m.
(End of regular season)

AAC standings
(Women’s basketball)

UTSA 12-1, 21-3
South Florida 10-2, 17-8
North Texas 10-3, 18-7
Tulane 8-4, 15-8
Temple 8-5, 14-10
Tulsa 6-6, 12-12
UAB 6-7, 15-10
Rice 5-7, 12-12
East Carolina 5-8, 13-12
Memphis 4-8, 6-17
Charlotte 3-9, 8-15
FAU 2-10, 10-15
Wichita State 2-11, 8-18

Saturday’s games

Charlotte at East Carolina, 1 p.m.
South Florida at FAU, 1 p.m.
Memphis at UTSA, 2 p.m.
North Texas at Tulsa, 2 p.m.
Rice at Wichita State, 2 p.m.
Temple at Tulane, 3 p.m.

UTSA women beat East Carolina 60-46 to stay undefeated at home this season

Posted on by
2
Sidney Love. UTSA beat East Carolina 60-46 at the Convocation Center on Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025, in American Athletic Conference women's basketball. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Teammates hoist UTSA guard Sidney Love into the limelight with the gold ‘Cash In’ chain for her efforts against the East Carolina Pirates. Love scored 15 points on six of eight shooting, and she also had three steals. – Photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The UTSA women kept alive their chances for an undefeated season at home Wednesday night with a 60-46 victory over the East Carolina Pirates in a physical American Athletic Conference encounter at the Convocation Center.

Jordyn Jenkins produced 23 points and six rebounds as first-place UTSA (21-3, 12-1 in the AAC) improved its home winning streak to 14 games, dating back to last year. The Roadrunners are 11-0 at home this season.

East Carolina (13-12, 5-8) came into San Antonio having won two in a row and three of four, including a road win at UAB. But UTSA was relentless with a defensive effort that held the visitors to 26 percent shooting from the field.

Jordyn Jenkins. UTSA beat East Carolina 60-46 at the Convocation Center on Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025, in American Athletic Conference women's basketball. - Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA forward Jordyn Jenkins contributed 23 points and also six rebounds. She shot 10 of 17 from the floor, as UTSA stayed one game in the loss column ahead of South Florida in the AAC title race. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Pirates guard Khia Miller was ejected from the game early in the second half for an intentional foul on Roadrunners’ forward Maya Linton. Linton also was assessed a technical, her second, which disqualified her for the remainder of the game.

Addressing the media afterward, UTSA coach Karen Aston wasn’t happy that one of her players was ejected. She didn’t love the idea that her team turned it over 21 times, either, or that East Carolina won the rebounding battle (41-39).

But she will take a 14-point victory in which her team led for almost the entire 40 minutes and led by as many as 20 in the second half.

“Happy to get another win here in the Convo, for sure,” Aston said. “(The season is) winding down and (it’s) hard to believe we just have two more of these (home games) in here. I thought we played really well, for the most part.

“We’ll look back on it and nit-pick a little bit about some careless turnovers. Obviously, the rebounding was a big one that we’ve got to clean up before we play (Memphis, at home) on Saturday. But I thought we had a better aggressiveness about ourselves today. A better tempo for the way we played offensively.

“That’s really what I was hoping for tonight. So, we’ll clean up the rest of it.”

UTSA forward Maya Linton picked up technical fouls in the second and third quarters. By rule, she was disqualified after the second one and was sent to the dressing room. – Photo by Joe Alexander

In what is shaping up as a possible dream season for the Roadrunners, they have won four straight overall and 14 of their last 15, with five to go in the regular season.

Sitting on 21 wins, they are tied with the 1983-84 Roadrunners for the third most in a season in school history, behind only the 2007-08 team with 23 and the ’08-09 team with 24.

Defeating ECU also allowed them to stay a game in the loss column ahead of the second-place South Florida Bulls (17-8, 10-2) and two games ahead of the third-place North Texas Mean Green (18-7, 10-3) in the AAC regular-season title race.

South Florida and North Texas both won at home Wednesday night to keep the pressure on the Roadrunners, with the Bulls downing the Rice Owls, 82-77 in three overtimes, and the Mean Green pounding the Memphis Tigers, 97-57.

In the UTSA postgame, Jenkins talked about what it was like to be on the floor, at home, and to be able to hold East Carolina to four points in a 17-4, second-quarter show of force.

“The home crowd obviously helps, really getting into it and chanting ‘D-Up,’ ” Jenkins said. “But it comes with communication on the court. When we’ve got solid communication, it’s fun, and it makes things easier.

“We have trouble with that a lot during practice. We need to be better at that so we can consecutively have good possessions.”

Cheyenne Rowe. UTSA beat East Carolina 60-46 at the Convocation Center on Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025, in American Athletic Conference women's basketball. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Forward Cheyenne Rowe came off the bench for eight points and 10 rebounds in 18 minutes. — Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA’s second quarter was a defensive clinic. The Roadrunners held the Pirates to one for 16 shooting from the field and forced five turnovers.

In addition, two UTSA forwards off the bench, Cheyenne Rowe and Taylor Ross, had a major impact. Both had five rebounds in the period alone and Ross, a freshman from Brennan, also blocked a shot.

Rowe (eight points, 10 rebounds for the game) and Ross (three and seven) both played 18 minutes total and allowed the Roadrunners to cruise to an easy victory, even with foul-plagued starters Idara Udo and Linton not being major factors in the game.

Asked about Rowe and Ross’ contributions, Aston said, “That’s what I’ve been looking for.”

Another narrative coming into the game centered on what happened between the Roadrunners and the Pirates the last time they played.

Last March 12 in Fort Worth, East Carolina rallied from a pair of 11-point deficits in the fourth quarter to beat UTSA, 55-54, in the AAC semifinals, ending the Roadrunners’ quest for the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.

Love and Jenkins both chuckled at a question about whether there was any talk among players in the last few days about last year’s disappointment against the Pirates.

“No, we kind of wanted to leave that in the past,” Love said. “I don’t know. I think we just moved on and focused on being in the present and being where we are right now.”

Forward Amiyah Joyner led the Pirates with 18 points and eight rebounds. The 6-foot-2 forward hit six of 13 shots from the field. The rest of her teammates shot a combined 11 of 52.

Karen Aston. UTSA beat East Carolina 60-46 at the Convocation Center on Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025, in American Athletic Conference women's basketball. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Coach Karen Aston has led UTSA to a 21-3 record, with five games to play before the AAC tournament. The program record for wins in a season is 24. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Records

East Carolina 13-12, 5-8
UTSA 21-3, 12-1

Coming up

Memphis at UTSA, Saturday, Feb. 15, 2 p.m.
UTSA at Rice, Saturday, Feb. 22, 4 p.m.

First half

Dominating with physical play in the paint and effective position defense on the perimeter, the Roadrunners held the Pirates to four points in the second quarter. Consequently, they surged to a 29-17 lead at halftime.

UTSA shrugged off a sluggish start and outscored ECU 17-4 in the second. ECU got flustered at the end of the period after Love tied up Joyner.

Trying to hang on to the ball, Joyner was pulled down to the floor. Once there, she tossed the ball and hit UTSA forward Maya Linton in the midsection. Linton tossed it back, prompting officials to stop play and go to the replay monitors.

After it was sorted out, both Joyner and Linton were hit with technical fouls.

Notable

Early in the third quarter, emotions boiled over once again. It started with Miller bringing the ball over halfcourt on the dribble, with Linton meeting her to contest. Trying to clear space, Miller swung her arms while clutching the ball.

Kim McNeill. UTSA beat East Carolina 60-46 at the Convocation Center on Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025, in American Athletic Conference women's basketball. - Photo by Joe Alexander

East Carolina coach Kim McNeill led the Pirates to 23 wins and a trip to the NCAA tournament in 2023. Her team beat UTSA last March in the AAC semifinals and then lost to Rice in the title game. – Photo by Joe Alexander

She appeared to land an elbow on Linton, who held her head with both hands momentarily. Afterward, she looked up and appeared to say something in frustration. Referees stopped the action again and went to the monitors to assess what happened.

Miller was hit with an intentional foul and an automatic ejection. Linton also got a technical. Combined with the one she had in the first half, she was sent to the dressing room.

Quotable

Aston said she didn’t see what caused the flaring of tempers between Joyner and Linton in the second quarter.

“I honestly didn’t see anything until the tail end,” Aston said. “They called a jump ball, and I’m trying to figure out whose possession it is. There’s only five seconds left. I’ll have to look at these situations on film and see if we can handle ourselves a little differently than what we did.

“I thought we re-grouped at halftime. We talked about it and then the little episode in the third quarter (between Miller and Linton) I thought really hurt us, to be honest with you, because it took away our aggression, because we didn’t quite know what to do with that, and we tried to monitor what was going on. I thought it took away from the flow of the game for us, definitely.

“So, we got to learn some lessons from that.”

AAC contenders

Basketball teams in the AAC play 18 games in the regular season. Here is a look at the top five in the AAC women’s title chase:

UTSA 12-1, 21-3
South Florida 10-2, 17-8
North Texas 10-3, 18-7
Tulane 8-4, 15-8
Temple 8-5, 14-10

Correction: An earlier version of this story misstated UTSA’s record in the AAC regular season. UTSA is 12-1 in conference.

Taylor Ross. UTSA beat East Carolina 60-46 at the Convocation Center on Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025, in American Athletic Conference women's basketball. - Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA freshman Taylor Ross contributed three points, seven rebounds and three blocked shots in 18 minutes. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Enjoying the grind: first-place UTSA women set to host the East Carolina Pirates

Posted on by
Reply
Sidney Love blocked shot. UTSA beat North Texas 54-52 in American Athletic Conference women's basketball on Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2025, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

The UTSA Roadrunners host the East Carolina Pirates tonight at the Convocation Center. – File photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Relay

The UTSA women’s basketball team is in a balancing act right now, trying at once to enjoy its historic success, while at the same time staying dialed into the serious business of winning a championship.

It’s an exhilarating — yet challenging — experience for the Roadrunners. Not only are they coming off an emotional victory that yielded the first 20-win season at UTSA in 16 years, but they’re also preparing for a home game against a surging opponent, hungry for its own continued success.

With her team holding a one-game lead in the loss column over its nearest competitor, UTSA coach Karen Aston says that “it’s really tough” to know exactly how to deal with the nuances of keeping her players loose and also focused with a competitive edge.

“It’s kind of a feel,” she said. “This particular team seems to do better when your foot is kind of on the gas a little bit and you have a sense of urgency in practice, no matter how long practice is, which none of them are really very long right now.

“But I think, it’s not a science. They’re kids. They’re human. They have other stuff going on. And to be able to find some kind of balance. Yeah, get in the gym, work on your shot. Don’t lose your skill set, but keep fresh legs.”

After staging a remarkable rally in the last few minutes to win last Saturday at Wichita State, improving to 20-3 on the season, UTSA returns home to face the East Carolina Pirates tonight. Tipoff is at 6:30 p.m. at the Convocation Center.

Winning is fun, yes. But the last thing Aston wants is for her players to feel mentally as if they’ve arrived, and they start to skip some steps on the practice court.

Then again, that’s something that could have happened before now and it hasn’t, likely because the players enjoy the work as much as they enjoy being around each other.

“Again, it’s not a science,” Aston said. “We kind of take every week as it goes. Every day as it goes. Kind of looking at what the week looks like and try to lighten some of their load, for some that have maybe logged a lot of minutes.

“You know, you want to keep the other guys … in game mode on practice days, the ones that don’t log as many minutes. They have to stay ready, and I think this group has done a great job with that. They enjoy practice for the most part, which makes it fun.

“And I appreciate how they’ve approached whatever we’ve given them. They don’t seem to question whatever the day is going to bring. I appreciate that about this group.”

Records

East Carolina 13-11, 5-7
UTSA 20-3, 11-1

Coming up

East Carolina at UTSA, tonight, 6:30 p.m.
Memphis at UTSA, Saturday, 2 p.m.

Notable

UTSA has won 13 of its last 14 games, including three straight victories since it dropped a 75-63 decision on the road at South Florida on Jan. 29.

The Roadrunners (11-1 in the AAC) have six games left on their regular-season schedule and lead the Bulls (9-2) by a game in the loss column.

One area of concern for UTSA lately is perimeter shooting. UTSA has hit only 16 percent (nine of 56) from the three-point arc over its last three games.

East Carolina started conference by losing three straight and six of its first eight, but has rebounded to win three of its last four, including a five-point road win at UAB last Wednesday. Coach Kim McNeill’s Pirates won at home on Saturday, defeating the Tulsa Golden Hurricane, 73-64.

Two years ago, the Pirates won 23 games and the AAC’s postseason title on their way to the NCAA tournament.

Last year, they reached the AAC title game by rallying in the fourth quarter of the semifinals to beat the Roadrunners, 55-54. Amiya Joyner, who had 13 rebounds in the victory, is ECU’s top player this season.

Joyner, a 6-foot-2 junior forward, is averaging 14.2 points and 8.5 rebounds. Freshman point guard Devin Hagemann leads the team with 59 assists. Hagemann passed for eight assists in the victory over the Golden Hurricane.

AAC standings

UTSA 11-1, 20-3
South Florida 9-2, 16-8
North Texas 9-3, 17-7
Tulane 8-4, 15-8
Temple 8-5, 14-10
Tulsa 6-6, 12-12
UAB 6-7, 15-10
Rice 5-6, 12-11
East Carolina 5-7, 13-11
Memphis 4-7, 6-16
Charlotte 2-9, 7-15
Florida Atlantic 2-10, 10-15
Wichita State 2-10, 8-17

Wednesday’s games

Wichita State at Charlotte
Rice at South Florida
East Carolina at UTSA
Memphis at North Texas

UTSA beat North Texas 54-52 in American Athletic Conference women's basketball on Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2025, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Tonight, the UTSA women will face the East Carolina Pirates, a team that eliminated them from the AAC tournament last season. – File photo by Joe Alexander