Late run lifts third-seeded Texas Tech past SFA, 70-60

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Keenan Evans scored 23 points Thursday night in a 70-60 victory for third-seeded Texas Tech over No. 14 Stephen F. Austin in an NCAA East Regional round-of-64 game at Dallas.

Trailing by seven, Texas Tech outscored SFA 26-9 in the last 10 minutes of the game to secure its first NCAA victory in 13 years.

The win lifted the Red Raiders (25-9) of the Big 12 conference into the round of 32 against either sixth-seeded Florida or No. 11 St. Bonaventure.

Riding a five-game winning streak into the tournament, the Southland Conference champs from SFA (28-7) played well for 30 minutes and had a chance, but lost in Kyle Keller’s first NCAA game as a head coach.

The game was a reunion of coaches, of sorts.

Keller and SFA assistant Jeremy Cox worked on Tim Carter’s staff at UTSA in the 1990s, and both knew Chris Beard, then an assistant at Incarnate Word.

Beard is in his second season as Texas Tech’s head coach.

Stat leaders

Texas Tech: Keenan Evans, 23 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists. Zhaire Smith, 10 points, 8 rebounds.

SFA: Ivan Canete, 17 points, 5 of 8 shooting, 4 steals. Shannon Bogues, 14 points off the bench. Kevon Harris, 12 points, 4 steals. TJ Holyfield, 10 points.

Coming up: Texas Tech will meet either Florida or St. Bonaventure with a berth in the Sweet 16 on the line. Tech’s last Sweet 16 berth came in 2005 under coach Bob Knight.

Rhode Island ends Oklahoma’s season, 83-78, in overtime

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Trae Young’s momentous freshman year is over.

Now we wait to see if his college career has expired, as well.

Trailing by four points at halftime, seventh-seeded Rhode Island rallied Thursday to oust Young and the No. 10 Oklahoma Sooners 83-78 in overtime in a round-of-64 NCAA Tournament game.

Young, with dazzling shot-making and play-making ability, soared into consideration for national Player of the Year honors in November, December and January.

He erupted for a season-high 48 points on Jan. 28 at Oklahoma State.

But the narrative of his memorable season, which included four 40-point outbursts, did not have a happy ending.

Young was stymied in his ultimate goal of leading the Sooners on a deep run in the tournament.

He played a steady game against Rhode Island, finishing with 28 points, seven assists and five rebounds.

But Young also had six turnovers, and he missed his first three field goal attempts in overtime.

Meanwhile, Rhode Island’s E.C. Matthews and Fatts Russell made the plays that counted.

Matthews, in particular, was brilliant down the stretch with two three-pointers in the extra period.

As for OU’s future, a lot depends on Young’s decision concerning the NBA draft.

He led the nation in scoring and assists and surely would make plenty of NBA teams better next year.

Most scouts seem to think he is still a first-round pick, as Sports Illustrated has reported, and first-round status still guarantees millions of dollars.

But you wonder after the Sooners’ late-season swoon whether he would consider returning to college, especially under a player’s coach like Lon Kruger.

We’ll see.

Stats leaders

Oklahoma: Trae Young, 28 points on 9 of 18 shooting, 3 of 9 from three. Also, 7 assists, 5 rebounds, 6 turnovers.

Rhode Island: E.C. Matthews, 16 points, 5 rebounds.

Records

Rhode Island, 26-7. Oklahoma, 18-14.

Coming up

Rhode Island advances in the Midwest Region to face either No. 2 Duke or 15th-seeded Iona.

Time to make some picks for the NCAA tournament

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The 64-team phase of the NCAA tournament starts this morning. It ends in a few weeks in San Antonio at the Final Four. With that, I’m here with picks through each round.

Round of 64

South

* Virginia over UMBC
* Creighton over Kansas State
* Kentucky over Davidson
* Arizona over Buffalo
* Miami, Fla., over Loyola-Chicago
* Tennessee over Wright State
* Nevada over Texas
* Cincinnati over Georgia State

West

* Xavier over Texas Southern
* Missouri over Florida State
* Ohio State over South Dakota State
* Gonzaga over UNC-Greensboro
* Houston over San Diego State
* Michigan over Montana
* Providence over Texas A&M
* North Carolina over Lipscomb

East

* Villanova over Radford
* Alabama over Virginia Tech
* West Virginia over Murray State
* Marshall over Wichita State
* Florida over St. Bonaventure
* Texas Tech over Stephen F. Austin
* Butler over Arkansas
* Purdue over Cal-State Fullerton

Midwest

* Kansas over Penn
* Seton Hall over North Carolina State
* Clemson over New Mexico State
* Auburn over College of Charleston
* TCU over Syracuse
* Michigan State over Bucknell
* Rhode Island over Oklahoma
* Duke over Iona

Round of 32

South

* Virginia over Creighton
* Kentucky over Arizona
* Tennessee over Miami
* Cincinnati over Nevada

West

* Xavier over Missouri
* Gonzaga over Ohio State
* Michigan over Houston
* North Carolina over Providence

East

* Villanova over Alabama
* West Virginia over Marshall
* Texas Tech over Florida
* Purdue over Butler

Midwest

* Kansas over Seton Hall
* Auburn over Clemson
* Michigan State over TCU
* Duke over Rhode Island

Round of 16

South

* Kentucky over Virginia
* Tennessee over Cincinnati

West

* Xavier over Gonzaga
* North Carolina over Michigan

East

* Villanova over West Virginia
* Purdue over Texas Tech

Midwest

* Kansas over Auburn
* Michigan State over Duke

Round of Eight

South

* Kentucky over Tennessee

West

* North Carolina over Xavier

East

* Villanova over Purdue

Midwest

* Michigan State over Kansas

National Semifinals

* North Carolina over Kentucky

*Villanova over Michigan State

Finals

* Villanova over North Carolina

UTSA beats Lamar 76-69 in CIT playoff opener

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Forward Nick Allen scores on a driving layup with 2:02 remaining to give UTSA an eight-point lead.

UTSA rallied in a home playoff game for its 20th victory of the season Wednesday night, claiming a 76-69 decision over Lamar in the first round of the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament.

Playing in front of an announced 1,012 at the Convocation Center, the Roadrunners (20-14) fell behind by eight in the first half before they found a rhythm in their game.

By the second half, they started to roll, playing tough defense, moving the ball on offense and gradually wearing down the Cardinals (19-14) of the Southland Conference.

With the victory, UTSA claimed its first 20-win season in seven years. The team also earned another CIT game at home.

Officials announced that the Roadrunners from Conference USA would play in the tournament’s quarterfinals at the Convocation Center on March 22. The opponent will be announced in coming days.

“It feels really good, really good,” UTSA coach Steve Henson said. “I’m happy for our guys. They earned the right to play in this event, and they came out and fought really hard.

“You know, it wasn’t easy in the first half. Just hangin’ and hangin,’ trying to stay in there, and they did.

“They’re just a good team. Lamar is tough and physical. It wasn’t easy but we hung in there and popped it open a little bit in the second half.”


UTSA forward Deon Lyle hits a three late in the first half against Lamar.

Stat leaders

UTSA — Deon Lyle, 16 points, including four three-pointers, eight rebounds. Giovanni De Nicolao, 14 points, including 10 in the second half, six assists.

Nick Allen, 13 points, 11 in the second half. Byron Frohnen, 11 points, 5 of 6 shooting.

Lamar — Nick Garth, 16 points, four three-pointers. Josh Nzeakor, 13 points, nine rebounds. Joey Frenchwood, 13 points. Colton Weisbrod, 12 points, 11 rebounds.

First-half struggles

Visiting Lamar held UTSA to 38 percent shooting in seizing a 33-31 lead at intermission.

Meanwhile, Lyle scored 14 points to keep the Roadrunners in contention, hitting four three-pointers in the half.

Lamar featured a more balanced attack with Garth, Nzeakor and Weisbrod scoring six points apiece.

Playing man-to-man defense primarily, Lamar limited UTSA to only 17 points in the first 15 minutes.

A three-pointer by Cardinals guard Frenchwood lifted the visitors to a 25-17 lead with 5:20 remaining.

A turning point

From there, Lyle sparked a UTSA rally.

He scored 11 points, including three shots from beyond the arc, lifting UTSA back into contention.

“It’s not the first time he’s done that on the year,” Henson said. “You know, there’s times we’re going along and don’t have much going on the offensive end and he just jumps up and knocks down a couple of threes.

“We needed those, for sure.”


UTSA’s defense picks up intensity early in the second half as forward Nick Allen switches off his man to contest a jumper.

Shooting stars

UTSA emerged in the second half shooting the ball well, connecting on five of its first 11 attempts.

The Roadrunners took a 45-44 lead on De Nicolao’s three from the top of the key with 13:03 remaining.

Moments later, Garth tied the game at the free throw line.

But UTSA retaliated with Frohnen and De Nicolao scoring inside, and then Keaton Wallace connected on a long three for a 7-0 run over 65 seconds.

As a result, the crowd was in a roar as the Roadrunners led 53-46 with 11 minutes to play.

Lamar answered with a 12-7 run of its own that included two threes by Garth, and with 4:23 remaining, the Cardinals were within two at 60-58.

But De Nicolao banked in a three and Allen scored in the paint to push the Roadrunners ahead by seven.

Lamar got no closer than five the rest of the way.


UTSA’s Giovanni De Nicolao sets up the offense in the first half, passing to the wing for George Willborn III, who drives hard and dishes to Byron Frohnen for the layup.

Notes

UTSA, in its 37th year of basketball, registered only its second win in a postseason setting outside of conference tournament play.

The first such victory came in 2010-11, when the Roadrunners defeated Alabama State in the NCAA tournament’s round of 68.

UTSA won its 12th home game of the season and its 23rd in two years under Henson.

The dream scenario

De Nicolao, a sophomore point guard from Italy, said he thinks the Convocation Center needs to be re-decorated.

With a championship banner.

“We want to win this tournament right now, because, honestly, we want to have a (banner) somewhere — right there,” said De Nicolao, pointing to the arena rafters. “I’ve always said that.

“This year is an opportunity, and next year, I think, we’re going to have a bigger one.”

UTSA vs. Lamar photo gallery

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Nick Allen. UTSA lost to Sam Houston State on Thursday, March 22, 2018, at the UTSA Convocation Center in the CollegeInsider.com Tournament quarterfinals.

UTSA beat Lamar 76-69 on Wednesday, March 14, 2018 at the UTSA Convocation Center in the CollegeInsider.com Tournament. UTSA’s Nick Allen, who scored 11 points, shoots over the Sam Houston State defense. Photo by Joe Alexander

First NCAA dance: UTSA made history in its seventh season

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Texas Lutheran coach Mike Wacker (left) and UIW’s Ken Burmeister. (Soobum Im / The University of the Incarnate Word)

Quietly, and with very little fanfare, the 30th anniversary of an iconic moment in San Antonio’s college basketball history has arrived.

Not much has been written or said about it, outside of a few whispers among friends who experienced it first-hand.

But it’s hard to forget the 1987-88 season and the memories of UTSA’s first wild ride in March to an NCAA tournament.

Ken Burmeister. The Incarnate Word men's basketball team opened the season with an 87-71 victory over Southwestern on Friday night. (Joe Alexander / theJBreplay.com)

Incarnate Word’s Ken Burmeister coached UTSA to the 1988 NCAA tournament. (Joe Alexander / theJBreplay.com)

If you show the UTSA team picture from that year to Ken Burmeister and Mike Wacker, for instance, the nostalgia starts to flow freely.

Burmeister, recently fired after 12 seasons at Incarnate Word, served as UTSA’s head coach at the time.

Wacker, now leading the program at Texas Lutheran, worked under Burmeister that year on a staff that included Gary Marriott, Glynn Cyprien and David Oliver.

Burmeister and Wacker talked at length about the good times last December, before UIW hosted and defeated Wacker and Division III TLU, 91-63.

“It was just a dream come true for me, being part of coach Burmeister’s (UTSA) staff, and working with (assistant) coach (Gary) Marriott,” Wacker said. “I mean, those players were just so much fun to be around.

“They worked so hard, and for them to achieve that, under coach B’s leadership, I was just happy to be along for the ride.”

Tournament time

In only the seventh season in program history, UTSA finished third in the Trans America Athletic Conference regular season standings, behind both Georgia Southern and Arkansas-Little Rock, who tied for first.

But when the Roadrunners arrived at Daytona Beach, Florida, for the TAAC tournament, something clicked.

High-scoring forward Frank Hampton got hot, and UTSA won three games in three days at the Ocean Center, knocking off No. 2-seed Little Rock in the semifinals and No. 1 Georgia Southern in the finals.

The sweetest moment may have arrived on the day UTSA played Little Rock.

The Trojans, under Mike Newell, had been a nemesis of the Roadrunners for two seasons, winning all five games they had played.

That’s before Hampton, a UTSA senior from Chicago, erupted for 42 points in a 101-75 victory to eliminate Little Rock.

Another moment in time came a few days later, when No. 14 seed UTSA traveled to Cincinnati to play in the NCAA first round against third-seeded Illinois.

Battling against future NBA first-round draft picks Kendall Gill and Nick Anderson, the Roadrunners played the Big Ten school on mostly even terms before falling 81-72.

UTSA finished 22-9.

Even with those highlights, Burmeister said his most vivid memories of the season centered on the coaching staff’s chemistry and on a senior class that never gave up on itself.

“The staff got along really well together, and we had a really good, experienced team,” the coach said. “We had some older guys. We had four seniors that, when we got to the (TAAC) tournament, they all stepped up for us.

“Every one of them (including Clarence McGee, Lennell Moore and Todd Barnes) contributed to a victory.”

Players bought into a disciplined approach from the start.

Burmeister inherited the approach from his days as an assistant under Lute Olsen at both Iowa and Arizona.

Leaving Arizona, he arrived at UTSA in 1986 stressing attention to detail in practices and in the classroom.

Stressing discipline

Wacker, a former all-conference power forward at Texas, lived in the Chase Hill student apartments so that he could keep close tabs on the players.

“When I was there, that was my job, to get ‘em up (in the morning),” Wacker said. “You know, they couldn’t be in their apartments after 8 o’clock.

“I know (coach Burmeister) has got similar stuff in place now (at UIW), and that means he cares about these guys after basketball stops.”

Flanked by his trusted assistants, Burmeister posted a 72-44 record in four years at UTSA. His .621 winning percentage remains as the highest in the school’s 37-year history.

Almost inexplicably, he was fired following the 1989-1990 season after finishing 22-7.

The end of his tenure has been traced to a falling out with Bobby Thompson, the school’s athletic director at the time.

“If our staff had stayed intact, we’d have gotten into the top 20,” said Burmeister, who finished 311-280 in 21 seasons as a head coach. “We’d have gotten to the (round of) 16 (in the NCAA tournament).

“Unfortunately, there were administrators over there that didn’t want success, and they made a change.”

Hurt feelings aside, nothing will take away from the pride in what the coaches and players accomplished three decades ago.

“We were literally doing it on a shoe-string (budget), as you well know,” said Wacker, who coached 26 years at Judson High School, before taking over at TLU in 2016. “I just think we all had the right attitude for it. Coach B was driven, driven to push us to be the best we could be.

“Really, that’s what he’s always done. It’s what he’s doing here (at UIW).”

Thirty years ago, in the 1987-88 season, the UTSA Roadrunners reached the NCAA men’s basketball tournament for the first time. (Courtesy, UTSA)

Burmeister (bottom row, fourth from left, kneeling) and Mike Wacker (bottom row, far left) pose with the team that made history as UTSA’s first NCAA tournament squad.

1987-88 UTSA basketball
Record: 22-9
Trans America Athletic Conference: 13-5
Individual statistics
Frank Hampton, 18.0 ppg, 7.4 rpg
Clarence McGee, 14.2, 8.7
Eric Cooper, 13.8, 2.8
Lennell Moore, 8.9, 4.8
Todd Barnes, 7.5, 1.9
Bruce Wheatley, 6.0, 5.8
Dion Pettus, 3.8, 1.4
Grant Martin 3.5, 2.7
Scott Smith, 3.3, 1.1
Mike Bragg, 3.2, 2.0
Gary Durbon 2.3, 0.7
Tim Knowles, 1.6, 1.6

St. Bonaventure records first NCAA victory in 48 years

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The St. Bonaventure Bonnies beat UCLA 65-58 Tuesday night for the program’s first NCAA tournament victory in 48 years.

With the win, 11th-seeded St. Bonaventure advanced to play No. 6 Florida on Thursday in an NCAA East Region round-of-64 game at Dallas.

Courtney Stockard produced 26 points, four rebounds and four steals, helping the Bonnies hand the Bruins their first NCAA opening-round loss since 2005.

Aaron Holiday, the leading scorer in the Pac-12, registered 20 points for UCLA.

Freshman guard leads Radford victory in NCAA First Four

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The Radford Highlanders broke open a close game early in the second half and forged a 71-61 victory over the LIU Brooklyn Blackbirds in the NCAA First Four.

Freshman Carlik Jones continued his clutch play in the postseason with 12 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists against the Blackbirds, in the game played at Dayton, Ohio.

His performance came only two days after he hit a buzzer-beating three to defeat Liberty Flames in the Big South title game.

Jashaun Agosto led the Blackbirds with 16 points and 7 rebounds.

Records: Radford (23-12), LIU Brooklyn (18-17)

Coming up: Radford, seeded 16th in the East, advances to play top seeded Villanova Thursday at Pittsburgh in the round of 64.

UTSA to host Lamar in first-round CIT game

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Forward Byron Frohnen hits a jump hook in a Feb. 24 home game victory over Louisiana Tech.

UTSA announced Monday that it would host the Lamar Cardinals Wednesday night at 7 in the first round of the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament, otherwise known as the CIT.

Lamar (19-13) of the Southland Conference is led by veteran coach Tic Price.

Second-year coach Steve Henson has guided UTSA (19-14) of Conference USA to its first national postseason game since 2011 when it last played in the NCAA tournament.

On Sunday, the game was tentatively set for Wednesday night at Lamar, in Beaumont.

But officials announced Monday afternoon that it would be played at the UTSA Convocation Center, a development that pleased Henson.

Henson said that it’s “terrific” to be able to play a postseason game at home.

“Just the opportunity to play, period, is very, very exciting,” the coach said. “When you look at the number of teams that are done right now, less than 40 percent of the teams in the country are still practicing today and getting ready to play a ball game.

“(I’m) proud of our guys for earning the opportunity. Then (we feel) fortunate to get a home game here. Our guys are very excited. Looking forward to playing.”


Lamar forward Josh Nzeakor makes a quick move for a dunk against Incarnate Word on Jan. 17.

On Jan. 25, UTSA was blown out by 24 points at Middle Tennessee. It was the team’s fourth loss in five games, and it left the Roadrunners at 10-11 on the season.

In that regard, it’s surprising that the Roadrunners are practicing in the second week of March.

“It feels good to still be on the court and still be out here playing,” said junior forward Deon Lyle, who was named the C-USA’s sixth man of the year.

Forward Byron Frohnen said the team was initially told on Sunday that it would be traveling.

“But they came out this morning and said it’s going to be a home game,”
he said. “So it’s that much better for us. We did a lot of traveling in the last few weeks.

“We’re definitely excited to stay home with our fans.”

Texas Tech, SFA to meet in NCAA round of 64 at Dallas

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Seven programs from the state of Texas were slotted into the 68-team NCAA men’s basketball tournament.

The tournament opens Tuesday night in Dayton, Ohio, on the first of two days of the First Four, and then it concludes with the Final Four, set for March 31 and April 2 at the Alamodome.

Here’s the bracket just released at ncaa.com.

Texas schools in the tournament include Texas Tech, Stephen F. Austin, TCU, Texas Southern, Houston, Texas A&M and Texas.

Texas Tech … The Red Raiders (24-9) are the No. 3 seed in the East Region and will be headed to Dallas to play on Thursday against 14th-seed Stephen F. Austin (28-6). The winner would play again on Saturday against sixth-seeded Florida or No. 11 UCLA or St. Bonaventure.

Stephen F. Austin … The Lumberjacks are coached by former UTSA and Texas A&M assistant Kyle Keller. In his second year with SFA, Keller led the Lumberjacks to the Southland Conference postseason title with a 59-55 victory over Southeastern Louisiana on Saturday night in Katy.

TCU … The sixth-seeded Horned Frogs (21-11) will play either No. 11 Syracuse (20-13) or Arizona State (20-11) on Friday in Detroit in the Midwest Region. If TCU can win, it would draw either third-seeded Michigan State or No. 14 Bucknell.

Texas Southern … The Tigers (15-19) open with the North Carolina Central Eagles (19-15) on Wednesday in Dayton on the second day of the First Four phase of the tournament. The winner of the matchup will advance as a No. 16 seed to face West Region No. 1 Xavier on Friday night in Nashville.

Houston … The Cougars (26-7) are seeded 6th in the West, opening Thursday in Wichita, Kansas, against No. 11 San Diego State (22-10). The winner would advance to play either No. 3 Michigan or No. 14 Montana on Saturday.

Texas A&M … The Aggies (20-12) are seeded 7th in the West and will start play Friday in Charlotte, North Carolina, against 10th-seeded Providence (21-13). If the Aggies advance they would face either No. 2 North Carolina or No. 15 Lipscomb on Sunday.

Texas … The Longhorns (19-14) are a No. 10 seed in the South, playing against No. 7 Nevada (27-7) on Friday in Nashville. A victory would boost them into a round of 32 game Sunday against either second-seeded Cincinnati or Georgia State.

Quotable

“This is a day we’ve looked forward to and knew it was going to happen,” Texas Tech coach Chris Beard told boosters Sunday night, in remarks published in the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. “So thanks for making it special for the players. We can’t thank you enough for your support this year. Let’s make Red Raider nation a big force in Dallas.”