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

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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.

FAU men rout the UTSA Roadrunners, 94-74, in Boca Raton

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By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The FAU Owls bolted to a 15-point halftime lead, built it to as many as 29 in the second half and then cruised to an easy 94-74 victory over the UTSA Roadrunners Wednesday in men’s college basketball.

In an American Athletic Conference game played at Boca Raton, Fla., guard KyKy Tandy scored 26 points to lead five FAU players in double figures.

The Owls shot 65 percent from the field in the second half and 54 percent for the game against the short-handed Roadrunners, who once again played with only eight scholarship players.

Tandy took the lead role in the offensive binge, hitting nine of 11 shots from the field and eight of 10 from the 3-point arc.

For the Roadrunners, six-foot-six guard Damari Monsanto continued his hot shooting, scoring 21 points on seven 3-point baskets. The Wake Forest transfer finished seven-for-nine from beyond the arc.

Another hot hand for UTSA, Houston area native Marcus Millender, scored 19. But the Owls did a decent job on the South Alabama transfer, who was held to six of 17 from the floor. FAU also did a decent job with Primo Spears, who finished with 16 points on six of 16.

A turning point came late in the first half. After Monsanto buried his fourth three of the game on the fast break to pull the Roadrunners to within one point, the Owls took off on an 18-4 run to the buzzer.

FAU put an exclamation mark on the run when it inbounded from the baseline to Baba Miller, who delivered from the post for a 47-32 lead with 32 seconds remaining.

The Owls won the rebounding battle 28-9 in the opening half and 43-28 for the game against the Roadrunners, who are playing without two big men that they had in their original recruiting class last summer.

After his rebound and basket to end the half, the Owls had firm control of the proceedings. In the first minute of the second half, Millender knocked down a three to bring UTSA to within 12.

Just like that, the Owls struck back, going off on a 15-3 streak to make it a 24-point game. Consecutive triples by Tandy, a transfer from Jacksonville State, made it 62-38 with 16 minutes left.

The Roadrunners would get no closer than 17 the rest of the way.

Just like the Roadrunners, the Owls have retooled their program with a new coach, John Jakus, who led his team to a victory over the Oklahoma State Cowboys earlier in the season. Backing up Tandy, Kaleb Glenn produced 17 points and seven rebounds off the bench. Guard Ken Evans Jr. and 7-foot center Matas Vokietaitis scored 12 points each.

The 6-foot-11 Miller was a wonder on the floor, with multiple skills, as he finished with 10 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds.

Records

UTSA 9-11, 3-5
FAU 11-10, 4-4

Coming up

UTSA at North Texas, Saturday, 5 p.m.

Re-arranging the furniture: UTSA men’s hoops practice gets rowdy

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Tai'Reon. The UTSA men's basketball team on Friday, Oct. 4, 2024, at the Convocation Center. - File photo by Joe Alexander

Guard Tai’Reon Joseph and the UTSA Roadrunners will get tested in an exhibition game Tuesday in Los Angeles against the Southern California Trojans. – File photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Coach Austin Claunch has conducted some rigorous, bump-and-grind type of practices in his first preseason camp with the UTSA Roadrunners.

But from the four or five workouts that I’ve seen since the start of the fall semester, Friday’s may have been the most physical yet.

Damari Monsanto. The UTSA men's basketball team on Friday, Oct. 4, 2024, at the Convocation Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

Wake Forest transfer Damari Monsanto heated up and hit four long-range shots — three from 3-point territory — toward the end of practice. – Photo by Joe Alexander

The get-after-it tone may have been set in the opening minutes as a few of the coaches took the challenge and ran wind sprints with the players. Even the 34-year-old Claunch put his head down and churned out a couple.

Hey, nobody wants to get beat by the old coach, right?

As the basketball phase of the workout commenced, I noticed the noise level in the Convocation Center. It was loud and getting louder. I swear, by the time they started the four-on-four, followed by five-on-five, the players’ voices — the barking of encouragement to one another — echoed into the rafters.

When the halfcourt scrimmaging started, bodies started flying. Once or twice, they tumbled into chairs on the side. One was flattened, others knocked askew. On one play, a loose ball resulted in players diving on the floor, out of bounds, behind the baseline.

On another, two players — Raekwon Horton and Jonnivius Smith — chased down a long rebound and seemed to careen off one another, off the end of the court and nearly out into the north concourse.

Defense definitely was the order of the day, but moments of offensive artistry also emerged. Tai’Reon Joseph, with a quick first step, slashed for layups. Primo Spears darted into the paint and popped some mid-range jumpers. Naz Mahmoud and Damari Monsanto rained threes.

For Mahmoud, it was one of the better workouts I’ve seen from him in a little more than a year. Not only did the sophomore from Leander consistently make triples out of the corner, he also scored off the bounce a few times, taking it all the way to the rim in traffic on one move.

The 6-foot-6 Monsanto was as good as I’ve seen him since I started attending drills early last month. Getting more and more fit as the fall practices have progressed, the Wake Forest transfer had a big day, raining in four straight jumpers at one point. Three were from beyond the three-point arc. Another came from about 17 feet out of the corner.

“Today, we really needed to get after it,” Claunch said. “Just be physical. Guard each other. Put these guys in some adversity, and I thought they responded.”

AAC media days

The Roadrunners’ men’s and women’s basketball teams will attend media days in the Dallas area this weekend. Representing the men will be Claunch, Primo Spears and Raekwon Horton. For the women, Coach Karen Aston will be joined by Jordyn Jenkins and Sidney Love.

Preseason polls

With the Roadrunners women picked to finish fifth in the AAC regular season, Jenkins was honored as a preseason all-conference first team selection. The UTSA men have been picked to finish tied for 11th out of 13.

California dreaming

Next up for the UTSA men is an exhibition game set for Tuesday night at Southern California, a power conference opponent previously from the Pac-12, now in the Big Ten. The game will be aired on Big Ten Network and streamed via B1G+. Tipoff at the Galen Center is at 9 p.m. central.

“It’s going to be awesome,” Claunch said. “We have a group that wants those matchups and those expectations, to go in and win those games. Obviously we’re a long way away from where we need to be. But, at the end of the day, we want to play the best in the country, and, like you say, USC has a great brand.”

The Trojans are coached by Eric Musselman, in his first year with the program after spending the past five seasons with the Arkansas Razorbacks.

Though the game is an exhibition and won’t count on either team’s record, it’s a fact that UTSA hasn’t had much success against power conference programs. The Roadrunners haven’t won a game against a team from one of the major revenue-producing conferences since they beat the Iowa Hawkeyes in 2009.

Coming together

Despite the results of the AAC polls, UTSA guard Marcus Millender expressed optimism that the Roadrunners could have a “breakout” season.

“I feel like this team is one of a kind,” Millender said. “I feel like this is going to be one of them breakout years, and everybody after this year is going to remember UTSA. We’re going to put UTSA on the map this year. From Day 1, I just feel like all the guys have bought in.

“Getting everyone together, trying to get everyone on the right page, I just feel like this is going to be one of those years, for sure.”

Millender said he didn’t think his teammates paid much attention to the AAC poll.

“That’s the good thing about our group of guys,” he said. “I mean, me personally, I’ve been an underdog my whole life. I’m just going to put my head down and keep working. I’m pretty sure all the other guys will, too.”