By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay
Guard Kenyon Giles scored 28 points Sunday, and the Wichita State Shockers dominated on defense and on the boards, dealing the UTSA Roadrunners an 84-67 loss on Senior Night.
In their last home game and the second-to-last of the season, the beleaguered Roadrunners played with six players and stayed within single figures of the Shockers for about 17 minutes.
After that, the Shockers gradually pulled away for their fifth straight victory.
The Roadrunners lost their fourth straight and their 21st in their last 22 games. They finished with 11 straight losses at home.
Senior Jamir Simpson and sophomore Baboucarr Njie scored 21 points apiece to lead the Roadrunners. Simpson, from Lima, Ohio, eclipsed the 2,000-point mark for his college career.
Forward Daniel Akitoby produced 16 points and 13 rebounds.
Defense was the name of the game for the Shockers, who held to Roadrunners to 33.3 percent shooting, including 20.6 percent in the first half.
Wichita State also blocked eight shots and produced four steals.
UTSA coach Austin Claunch acknowledged that his team played hard, but he added that the Roadrunners could have played better.
“First half our rhythm wasn’t there … We missed some that we normally make. Just wasn’t a great first half, and we’re playing a good team,” the coach said.
“We did a good job on Giles in the first half,” Claunch said, “Now you’re trying to play catch up, so the game is getting a little more loose and he gets a one-pass three. Just can’t happen.
“We made too many mental mistakes to beat a good team.”
Records
Wichita State 20-10, 12-5
UTSA 5-24, 1-16
Coming up
UTSA at Rice, Sunday, 2 p.m.
Notable
UTSA’s 24 losses tie the 1985-86 team for second-most in program history. Coach Don Eddy’s last team at UTSA finished 7-24. The program record for losses in a season is 27. Coach Brooks Thompson’s last team in 2015-16 finished 5-27.
First half
Dillon Battie scored 12 points, and Wichita State held UTSA to 20.6 percent shooting to build a 41-29 lead at intermission.
The Shockers broke the game open in the last seven minutes, defending, blocking shots and going on a 15-7 run.
Kenyon Giles started the burst with a three-pointer. Dillon Battie connected on a couple of free throws and then 7-foot-2 Will Berg rebounded and hit a follow shot, making it a 33-22 ball game.
Wichita State blocked five shots in the half, including two by TJ Williams.
Giles, the Shockers’ leading scorer, knocked down a 14-footer for the last points of the half.
The 5-10 guard from Chesapeake, Va., was held to seven points on three of 13 shooting.