Hot-shooting UTSA cruises past James Madison, 90-77

UTSA runs its halfcourt offense last week at home against East Central, Oklahoma. After winning one of three in the Bahamas Showcase, the Roadrunners (3-2 overall) will return home to take on Texas A&M Corpus Christi on Friday.

By Jerry Briggs
For theJBreplay.com

The UTSA Roadrunners shot a season-high 53.8 percent from the field Sunday and cruised to a 90-77 victory over James Madison at the Bahamas Showcase.

With the victory, UTSA (3-2) will return to San Antonio feeling better after losing on the first two days of the three-day event in Nassau.

The Roadrunners didn’t shoot it well in losses to Coastal Carolina (83-69) and Bradley (71-69).

They also got off to a slow start against James Madison, falling falling behind 10-3 and 12-6.

But by intermission, they had turned the momentum in their favor.

Moving the ball and hitting high percentage shots, UTSA increased a six-point halftime lead to 18 twice in the second half against James Madison (1-4), a Division I program at the FCS level.

UTSA coach Steve Henson told the team’s radio broadcast that his players needed a win before they left the island.

“The way the game ended yesterday, it left a bad taste in our mouth,” Henson said. “The first few possessions, we weren’t good. But I think we did a lot of good things and had a lot of different people step up.

“Loved our assists numbers (23 assists/12 turnovers) Loved how we moved the basketball. We looked like a good team on the offensive end.”

Freshman guard Jhivvan Jackson led five players in double figures with 22 points. Jackson entered the game averaging a team-best 15.8.

“He’s got terrific potential,” Henson said. “He’s got a long way to go on the defensive end. He’s got to focus on the details. But he’s a special talent. He can do things that a lot of guys can’t do.”

Jackson grew up in Puerto Rico and moved to Texas in seventh grade. He scored more than 2,000 points in his career at Euless Trinity High School.

“He’s just so quick, and he can shoot the ball,” Henson said. “He’s going to keep getting better and keep getting better. He’s just getting started. But, yea, he’s a very talented player.”

Scoring leaders:

UTSA: Jhivvan Jackson 22, Nick Allen 15, Austin Karrer 11, George Willborn III 10, Deon Lyle 10.

James Madison: Darius Banks 15, Joey McLean 14, Stuckey Mosley 13, Develle Phillips 10.

Coming up:

Friday: Texas A&M Corpus Christi at UTSA, 7 p.m.

UTSA forward Deon Lyle plays one-on-one defense against James Madison’s Gerrom Scissum Sunday at the Bahamas Showcase. Credit: Robyn Modica, for UTSA athletics