Category Archives: College basketball

UIW rallies for 80-78 victory in OT to stun North Dakota State

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Freshman guard Morgan Taylor arrived at the University of the Incarnate Word this summer with a nickname of “Mo-Buckets.”

Taylor lived up to the billing Saturday, hitting the winning shot in an 80-78 overtime victory over North Dakota State at The Islands of the Bahamas Showcase.

The Bison led by 15 points in the second half but could not hold off the Cardinals on the second day of the tournament in Nassau, Bahamas.

UIW, under new coach Carson Cunningham, battled from behind in the final minute of overtime for their first win of the season against an NCAA Division I opponent.

First, senior forward Charles Brown III gave the Cardinals a 78-76 lead with a 3-pointer with 58 seconds remaining.

On the other end of the floor, North Dakota State’s Cameron Hunter made a move to the basket, and was fouled, and hit two free throws to tie it.

After a UIW timeout, the Cardinals worked the ball to Taylor, who hit the winning shot with 26 seconds left for the eventual final score.

UIW of the Southland Conference escaped with the win when North Dakota State’s Vinnie Shahid missed a three-pointer.

Taylor finished with 24 points, five rebounds and two steals for the Cardinals, who improved their record to 4-2 on the season.

Brown added 14 points and sophomore guard Cody Graham 13.

Tyson Ward scored 14 to lead the Bison, followed by Rocky Kreuser (13) and Jared Samuelson (12). With the loss, North Dakota State of the Summit League fell to 1-3.

Notable

Taylor played under coach Gene Nolan at Marist High School in Chicago. He averaged 21.8 points in his senior year at Marist.

No. 3 Gonzaga wallops Texas A&M, 94-71

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Third-ranked Gonzaga allowed Texas A&M to stay in the game for the first 14 minutes and then rolled to an easy 94-71 victory Thursday night in front of a rowdy crowd at the McCarthey Center in Spokane, Washington.

In the first home game for Gonzaga against a team from the Southeastern Conference, the Bulldogs overwhelmed the Aggies by shooting 49.2 percent from the field while forcing 14 turnovers and blocking 10 shots.

Guard Zach Norvell scored 22 points to lead Gonzaga, a team that reached the NCAA title game in 2017 and the round of 16 last season. Forward Rui Hachimura produced 18 points and seven rebounds.

Savion Flagg scored 18 and T.J. Starks 16 for A&M.

Both teams entered the game with key players sidelined. Forward Killian Tillie is out for Gonzaga with a leg injury. Guard Admon Gilder did not make the trip for A&M because of unspecified health issues.

Gilder out indefinitely

A&M senior guard Admon Gilder will be out indefinitely due to health issues, according to a story posted on texags.com.

Gilder will remain in Texas for further evaluation while the Aggies travel to Washington and Vancouver in the coming week.

“I’m grateful for our medical team at Texas A&M. They are working diligently to get Admon back to the court as soon as possible, but his overall well-being is our priority,” head coach Billy Kennedy said.

Gilder said he is disappointed that he can’t be with the team this week.

“I understand that my health is important and that resolving this successfully will allow me to continue to pursue basketball for years to come,” he said. “I will overcome with God’s help, for I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.”

No. 21 TCU rallies past Fresno State to remain undefeated

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The 21st-ranked TCU Horned Frogs on Thursday night rallied from a two-point halftime deficit at home to remain undefeated with a 77-69 victory over the Fresno State Bulldogs.

Junior guard Desmond Bane led the Frogs with 23 points and 7 rebounds.

Senior guard Alex Robinson added 14 assists and 13 points to facilitate an offense that finished with 51.7 percent shooting.

Bane’s drive to the basket for a layup and a three-point play helped TCU (3-0) pull away from Fresno (1-1) in the last two minutes.

TCU opened the season with a come-from-behind, 66-61 victory at home over Cal State Bakersfield.

The Frogs outscored the Roadrunners 38-24 in the second half after trailing by nine at intermission.

In Game 2, TCU played at a much higher level, shooting 50 percent from the field and rolling past Oral Roberts, 79-62.

Guard Braxton Huggins scored 18 points to lead Fresno State, a program with 66 wins in the past three seasons.

Bulldogs guard Deshon Taylor, a first-team, all-Mountain West Conference player, was held to 13 points on 4 of 13 shooting.

Dixon’s extension

After reaching the NCAA tournament for the first time in 20 years last spring, TCU handed coach Jamie Dixon a two-year extension on his contract that runs through 2023-24.

In Dixon’s first year at TCU, the Frogs finished 24-15 and won the NIT. Last season, they posted a 21-12 record and lost in the NCAA round of 64 to Syracuse.

Hutson takes over at Fresno

Justin Hutson is in his first year as head coach at Fresno, replacing Rodney Terry, who left to take the head coaching job at uTEP.

Hutson helped lure Kawhi Leonard to San Diego State. Hutson worked as an assistant with the Aztecs from 2006-11 and from 2013-18.

Leonard played at San Diego State for two seasons from 2009-11 before entering the NBA Draft, where he became a star with the Spurs.

The Spurs traded Leonard to Toronto last summer.

UTSA signs two to national letters of intent

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UTSA on Wednesday announced the signing of Le’Jon Doss and Jacob Germany.

The Roadrunners released the news on the first day of the NCAA Division I fall signing period.

Doss is a 6-foot-5 forward from Fort Worth Nolan Catholic High School. Germany is a 6-11 center from Kingston High School in Kingston, Oklahoma.

The pair will join the team for the 2019-20 season.

Looking for their first victory of the season, the Roadrunners (0-2) will play on the road against the Oklahoma State Cowboys (0-1).

What if? Lon Kruger once got a call to gauge his interest in UTSA

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Before Oklahoma basketball coach Lon Kruger left the UTSA Convocation Center Monday night with his 621st career victory, I knew I had to ask him about a story that I’d heard for years.

Did former UTSA athletic director Rudy Davalos really call him back in the 1980s, inquiring about whether he wanted to coach the Roadrunners?

“I think we had that conversation,” Kruger said.

Oklahoma coach Lon Kruger. Oklahoma beat UTSA 87-67 on Monday, Nov. 12, 2018, at the UTSA Convocation Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

Oklahoma coach Lon Kruger. — Photo by Joe Alexander

As the story goes, Davalos was worried that he was about to lose Don Eddy, who was interviewing for the head coaching job at Oral Roberts in Oklahoma.

Which prompted Davalos to start looking around to see who might be available to fill the void.

He ended up calling Kruger, who was in his 30s and coaching the Pan American University Broncs in Edinburg.

Pan American is now known as UT Rio Grande Valley.

“I don’t remember the details,” Kruger said. “But as you mention that, it seems like there’s some truth to that. We had a conversation about, ‘What if?’ ”

As it turned out, Eddy did not get the Oral Roberts job.

He returned to UTSA for a fifth season, and Kruger would continue to build his program in the Valley.

By the spring of 1986, Pan American won 20 games, and after the season, Kruger got a much better opportunity.

He took over in the offseason at Kansas State, his alma mater, and ended up reeling in a pretty good recruit by the name of Steve Henson.

As Kruger’s very first recruit in Manhattan, Henson went on to star as a point guard for the Wildcats.

Now in his third year as UTSA’s coach, Henson would also play several years in the NBA.

“Steve was our first recruit,” Kruger said. “He was a fantastic player and a great leader. No surprise that he’s continued that throughout his life.”

Henson later served as an assistant under Kruger at Illinois, with the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks, at UNLV and at Oklahoma.

Kruger was the first college coach to lead five different programs to the NCAA tournament.

He’s coached two teams to the Final Four, including his 2016 OU team, which was aided at the time by Henson.

“He’a just had an unbelievable work ethic,” Kruger said of the UTSA coach. “He had it as an NBA player and as an assistant coach. Now he’s doing it as a head coach.”

UTSA coach Steve Henson. Oklahoma beat UTSA 87-67 on Monday, Nov. 12, 2018, at the UTSA Convocation Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA coach Steve Henson. — Photo by Joe Alexander

Postscript

For the record, Oklahoma beat UTSA 87-67 on Monday night in front of a rowdy crowd of 2,494.

With the victory, Kruger improved to 621-395 in his career. He is 4-3 against UTSA, including 2-3 in his four years at Pan American and now 2-0 at OU.

As for whether he would have come to UTSA if Eddy had left the program, we’ll never know.

“It just didn’t happen,” Kruger said.

Lon Kruger vs. UTSA

Legendary college basketball coach Lon Kruger is 4-3 in his career against UTSA, including 2-3 when he worked at Pan American and 2-0 at Oklahoma.

1983-84

Jan. 28, 1984 – At Edinburg – UTSA def. Pan American, 68-67

Feb. 25, 1984 – At San Antonio – UTSA def. Pan American, 75-68

1984-85

Jan. 19, 1985 – At San Antonio – Pan American def. UTSA, 79-70

Jan. 24, 1985 – At Edinburg – UTSA def. Pan American, 60-59

1985-86

Jan. 25, 1986 – At San Antonio – Pan American def. UTSA, 84-71, OT

2017-18

Dec. 4, 2017 – At Norman, Oklahoma – Oklahoma def. UTSA, 97-85

2018-19

No. 12, 2018 — At San Antonio – Oklahoma def. UTSA, 87-67

Oklahoma rallies in the second half to beat UTSA, 87-67

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UTSA sophomore guard Keaton Wallace. Oklahoma beat UTSA 87-67 on Monday, Nov. 12, 2018, at the UTSA Convocation Center.

UTSA sophomore Keaton Wallace pulls up for a shot Monday night with OU forward Brady Manek defending. Wallace scored a team-high 16 points. — Photo by Joe Alexander

For UTSA basketball fans stressing out over an 0-2 start, there’s really no reason to panic.

Roadrunners coach Steve Henson will find a way — that is, if you believe Oklahoma Sooners coach Lon Kruger.

Trailing by four points six minutes into the second half Monday night, Kruger’s Sooners powered past the Roadrunners, 87-67.

A crowd of 2,494 at he Convocation Center watched as OU manufactured a 39-15 run in the last 14 minutes to turn back a UTSA upset bid.

Combined with a 77-76 loss last week to Division II St. Edward’s, the Roadrunners remain winless leading into a Wednesday night road test at Oklahoma State.

Kruger suggested afterward that Henson, his longtime former assistant, will figure it out.

Remember, Henson is the guy who arrived at UTSA in 2016 to take over a team with five victories the previous season.

UTSA won 14 games in the coach’s first year, followed by 20 last year.

It’s an achievement that has surprised even Kruger, Henson’s coaching mentor since the late 1980s.

“No one is going to work harder at it than Steve and do it with more integrity than Steve,” Kruger said. “That they did it so quickly (in turning around the program) may be a little bit of a surprise.

“No, he’s got all the qualities to be an outstanding coach. He’s been one for two years, and I expect that to continue.

“I like his ball club this year a lot,” said Kruger, whose Sooners improved to 2-0. “You get (Jhivvan) Jackson back healthy and a couple others playing well, I like his team a whole lot.”

Jackson, UTSA’s leading scorer, is due back in December following knee surgery last spring.

Without him, the Roadrunners lack a go-to man when they need a bucket.

As a result, UTSA shot 44 percent against St. Edward’s and followed with 35.6 percent against Oklahoma.

The Roadrunners have also been turnover prone.

They had 19 in the opener and 14 against the Sooners, including several down the stretch.

Henson characterized the team’s mood after the loss as disappointed, “as it should be.”

“Disappointed that we didn’t play the way we needed to,” Henson said. “We fought, competed. Our effort was good. Our focus was good. Preparation was good, and they’re a good team.

“The main topic was turnovers. Some forced. Some unforced. They trapped us a little bit, which is something I thought our team would thrive off of … But (we) didn’t handle that very well.”

Oklahoma coach Lon Kruger. Oklahoma beat UTSA 87-67 on Monday, Nov. 12, 2018, at the UTSA Convocation Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

Oklahoma coach Lon Kruger watched as his team overcame a four-point, second-half deficit to beat UTSA by 20. — Photo by Joe Alexander

Individuals

Oklahoma — Shooting guard Christian James scored a game-high 24 points on 8 of 10 shooting. Point guard Aaron Calixte had 18 points and four assists. Forward Brady Manek contributed 10 points and 11 rebounds.

UTSA — Guard Keaton Wallace had 16 points, four assists, two blocks and a steal. Forward Nick Allen scored 15. Point guard Giovanni De Nicolao had 12 points, 10 rebounds and seven turnovers.

First half

With the offense struggling, the Roadrunners went scoreless for the first eight minutes and fell behind, 7-0. But after trailing by 12, they rallied with a 23-11 run to tie the game. Keaton Wallace hit consecutive threes in the streak, including one from long distance (see video below). OU retaliated with an 11-1 run to the buzzer, lifting OU into a 39-29 lead at the break.

Second half

The Roadrunners enjoyed the best six-minute stretch of the season at the outset, roaring from behind with a 23-9 run to take a 52-48 lead. Nick Allen keyed the streak with three baskets, including a driving layup, a three-pointer and a layup. De Nicolao and Wallace also added threes during the streak. Undaunted, the Sooners countered with solid bench play from Miles Reynolds and Jamal Bienemy. A Bienemy steal and layup, a jumper and another layup put OU up by five. The Sooners would not look back.

Nick Allen. Oklahoma beat UTSA 87-67 on Monday, Nov. 12, 2018, at the UTSA Convocation Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

Nick Allen drives to the hoop against Oklahoma’s Christian James. Allen finished with 15 points.

UTSA vs. OU photo gallery

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UTSA freshman guard Tamir Bynum. Oklahoma beat UTSA 87-67 on Monday, Nov. 12, 2018, at the UTSA Convocation Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA freshman guard Tamir Bynum.

Oklahoma beat UTSA 87-67 on Monday, Nov. 12, 2018, at the UTSA Convocation Center.

UTSA braces for a visit from the Oklahoma Sooners

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UTSA coach Steve Henson starts practice Sunday afternoon in preparation for a much-anticipated home game Monday night against the Oklahoma Sooners.

On a rainy Sunday afternoon at UTSA, assistant basketball coach Mike Peck stopped outside the locker room, opening his eyes wide when asked about the challenge of playing a home game against the Oklahoma Sooners.

“I thought about staying in church til game time, just praying,” Peck said. “Steve said, ‘No.’ ”

Peck’s boss, UTSA head coach Steve Henson, smiled at his assistant’s comment.

Henson acknowledged the challenge at hand in facing the Sooners, for whom he worked as an assistant before taking the job at UTSA in 2016.

But he also said it’s not necessarily in his team’s best interest to slow it down.

Oklahoma (1-0) and UTSA (0-1) will tip off on Monday at 7 p.m. at the Convocation Center.

“They’re an imposing looking crew,” Henson said. “They are. They’ve done a great job. A couple of those skinny guys came in there, and Bryce Daub on the (OU) strength and conditioning staff has done a great job, bulking them up.

“We’re not going to out-muscle ’em. We’re not going to overpower ’em. But, we’re going to try to spread ’em out, move ’em, attack ’em.

“A lot of times, when you’re playing an elite program like that, you’re worried about trying to slow things down, thinking fewer possessions is better, that fewer possessions is going to increase your chances for winning.

“We’re not going to look at it that way. I don’t know that that’s to our advantage. I think more possessions is better than fewer possessions.”

Taylor, Peevy lead Incarnate Word past UT Tyler

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Incarnate Word is off to a 2-1 start under first-year coach Carson Cunningham (at left).

Freshman guard Morgan Taylor scored 19 points and sophomore forward Christian Peevy added 15 Saturday as the Incarnate Word Cardinals downed UT Tyler, 66-54, at the McDermott Center.

With the victory, UIW improved to 2-1 on the season. UIW will host Texas Lutheran on Monday night to complete a three-game homestand.

UIW is a fledgling NCAA Division I program competing in the Southland Conference.

The Cardinals are playing in their first season under coach Carson Cunningham, a former guard at Purdue.

Cunningham is in his first season as a Division I coach after working the past five seasons at NAIA Carroll College in Montana.

So far, the coach has been playing with a lot of young players.

It hurt him in the opener last week when UIW was pounded 87-37 against Big 12 power Texas Tech.

But the young Cardinals seem to be finding some confidence against teams from the lower levels of college basketball.

First, they defeated NAIA St. Francis, Illinois, 63-49, on Friday night.

Next, a night later, they handled UT-Tyler with ease.

Both nights, Cunningham started four freshmen and a sophomore.

Despite their youth, the Cardinals pulled away from the Patriots mid-way through the first half and led by 22 several times in the second half.

Notes

The Patriots are in the first year of a transition from NCAA Division III to Division II.


UIW senior Charles Brown hits a shot in the paint Friday night against St. Francis, Illinois. Freshman point guard Morgan Taylor started the play out front by passing to another freshman, Romello Wilbert, who fed Brown in the post.

Cunningham wins first game as UIW basketball coach

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The University of the Incarnate Word held St. Francis, Illinois, to 28.6 percent shooting Friday night en route to a 63-49 victory, the first for Carson Cunningham as coach of the Cardinals.

With the win, UIW improved to 1-1 on the season and earned a measure of redemption after a 50-point loss at Texas Tech on Tuesday.

St. Francis remained at 0-0 as it played the game as an exhibition.

“It was nice to see the guys really working on defense,” said Cunningham, who was in his UIW home debut. “I thought they were really trying to execute the game plan on defense.

“Give St. Francis a ton of credit. They played great, and they played really hard. It’s nice to get the win. I think it’s also going to help us get better.”

UIW plays as an NCAA Division I program in the Southland Conference, and so St. Francis, an NAIA team based in Joliet, Illinois, entered the Convocation Center looking for an upset.

In the second half, the Saints put together a 15-4 run to take a 39-38 lead with 11:52 remaining. Undaunted, UIW scored 13 of the next 15 points to regain control.

After a fast break dunk by freshman guard Morgan Taylor, UIW was up, 51-41. St. Francis never got closer than eight the rest of the way.

Individual leaders

Senior forward Charles Brown III came off the bench to score 14 points to lead the Cardinals, who shot 60 percent rrom the floor.

In addition, Taylor scored 11 in a team-high 34 minutes. Sophomore forward Christian Peevy added 10, all in the first half.

St. Francis point guard Terrion Howard, only 5-feet-4, led the Fighting Saints with 20.

First half

Peevy came off the bench for 10 points, six rebounds and two assists in the half.

Notes

The game marked the home debut for Cunningham, who was hired last March to replace Ken Burmeister. Burmeister stepped down after 12 seasons as coach.

Cunningham, who worked the past five seasons at Carroll College in Montana, started four freshmen and a sophomore. He has eight freshman on his 15-man roster.

Moment of silence

A moment of silence was observed before the game for the late Simi Socks, a former UIW player who died last June.

Socks, a power forward, played in 80 games for the Cardinals over the past three seasons.

Near the end of the first half (see video above), St. Francis defenders cut off Peevy on the baseline. But Peevy dished between two men to freshman Bryce Davis for a layup.