Tag Archives: UTSA Roadrunners

Little Rock rallies to beat UTSA 93-84 with 59 percent shooting in the second half

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By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

If the Little Rock (Ark.) Trojans were rattled by the UTSA Roadrunners’ 3-point shooting early in the game, they shook it off in due course, coming alive in the second half on their home court to register a 93-84 victory on Wednesday night.

In the end, the Little Rock guard duo of Jamir Chaplin and Bradley Douglas took down UTSA and its three-game winning streak.

Chaplin, a 6-foot-5 transfer from South Florida, led the Trojans with 22 points. The 6-1 Douglas sizzled at the end of the game, scoring 11 of his 20 in the final five minutes.

Guard Christian Tucker led UTSA with 23 points. Adante’ Holiman, Tucker’s backcourt mate, sat out his second straight game as he recovers from concussion symptoms.

Once again, the Roadrunners shot it well from the perimeter. After making a school-record 19 three-point shots at home on Sunday against Division II Arkansas-Fort Smith, the Roadrunners knocked down 14 of 34 from the arc.

UTSA was particularly effective early, making nine triples in the first half. But after surging to a 35-21 lead, the Roadrunners failed to hang on. By late in the half, the Trojans had taken the lead. UTSA got a bucket by Massal Diouf in the final minute to move back ahead by 43-42 at intermission.

In the second half, the Trojans started guarding the shooters better and began to crank their own offense. They hit 16 of 27 from the field for 59.3 percent.

Records

UTSA 5-5
Little Rock 5-6

Coming up

UTSA at Oregon State, 2 p.m.

Notable

Isaiah Wyatt tried to rally UTSA, scoring 11 of his 16 points in the second half, but it wasn’t enough. Wyatt also finished with a team-high nine rebounds. Guard PJ Carter and Dre Fuller produced 12 points apiece and Carlton Linguard Jr. had 10. With the loss, UTSA fell to 1-4 on the road.

It’s too early to tell if a federal district judge’s ruling on Wednesday will allow the Roadrunners to play some of their players sitting out as transfers in the next two weeks.

Judge John P. Bailey granted a 14-day temporary restraining order during a hearing in his West Virginia court room, giving college athletes who have transferred more than once in their careers immediate eligibility at least for the next 14 days, according to a story by Ross Dellenger in Yahoo Sports.

“As a result of today’s decision impacting Division I student-athletes, the association will not enforce the year in residency requirement for multiple-time transfers and will begin notifying member schools,” the NCAA said in a statement released to Dellenger.

Multiple-time transfers for UTSA include Jordan Ivy-Curry, Justin Thomas and Juan Reyna. Ivy-Curry and Thomas are scholarship players and Reyna is a walk-on who has been practicing well.

By the letter of the ruling, it appears that the three theoretically could be deemed eligible to play in at least two games — against Oregon State on Sunday and against Army at home on Dec. 21. The judge is expected to address the issue again on Dec. 27.

Quotable

UTSA coach Steve Henson didn’t talk about the judge’s ruling or the statement by the NCAA during his post-game radio comments.

He did say that he felt like the Roadrunners were in “pretty good shape” in the middle of the first half when the Trojans made their big run to intermission.

“Defense in the second half was disappointing,” Henson told Andy Everett, the team’s radio voice. The coach went on to say that the Trojans “just won a lot of individual battles, just kind of went right at us, scored right in our face. Got to compete to get that stop.”

UTSA is in Arkansas to play the Little Rock Trojans

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Game Day report

UTSA men (5-4)
at Little Rock (4-6)
Tonight at 6:30

Coming off four wins in its last five games and three in a row, the UTSA men’s basketball team is on the road today, scheduled to play in Arkansas against the Little Rock Trojans. The Roadrunners (5-4) will take on the Darrell Walker-coached Trojans (4-6).

The game will pit former NBA guards who are now NCAA Division I coaches. Darrell Walker, in his sixth year at Little Rock, played in 720 games across 11 seasons in the NBA through 1993. Steve Henson, in his eighth year at UTSA, played 238 games in parts of seven NBA seasons through 1999.

The Roadrunners are coming off wins at home against Incarnate Word, Lamar and Division II Arkansas-Fort Smith. Despite the winning streak, they are listed at No. 300 out of 362 Division I teams in the NCAA’s latest NET computer rankings. The Roadrunners are transitioning this season into the American Athletic Conference.

Little Rock is ranked No. 251 in the NET. The Trojans of the Sun Belt Conference are 4-2 at home, including a win against Tulsa of the AAC. The Trojans beat the Golden Hurricane 84-82 in overtime on Nov. 25.

Notable

Let the record show that Darrell Walker helped to spoil the UTSA Roadrunners’ inaugural game of men’s basketball.

On Nov. 30, 1981, the University of Arkansas guard scored 14 points to tie for team-high honors in leading the Razorbacks to a 71-42 victory over the Roadrunners at HemisFair Arena. Walker was four for five from the field and six for 10 at the line in the game played in downtown San Antonio. Walker will coach the Little Rock Trojans tonight in Arkansas against UTSA.

UTSA steps up intensity in second half and routs Arkansas-Fort Smith, 93-60

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Carlton Linguard Jr. UTSA men's basketball beat Arkansas-Fort Smith 93-60 on Sunday, Dec. 10, 2023, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Carlton Linguard Jr. scored a career-high 21 points Sunday afternoon. He hit eight of 13 shots from the field, including five of eight from three-point distance, in UTSA’s first game after a nine-day break for final exams. – Photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Bouncing back from a sub-par, first-half performance, the UTSA Roadrunners hit 13 of their school-record 19 three pointers after intermission on Sunday and rolled to a season-high in points in a 93-60 victory over the NCAA Division II Arkansas-Fort Smith Lions.

Center Carlton Linguard scored a career-high 21 points and pulled down seven rebounds as UTSA (5-4) won its third straight game. Guard Isaiah Wyatt added 20 — his second straight with 20 or more — in UTSA’s first game after a nine-day break for final exams.

Steve Henson. UTSA men's basketball beat Arkansas-Fort Smith 93-60 on Sunday, Dec. 10, 2023, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Steve Henson’s Roadrunners won their third straight game and improved to 5-4 on the season. – Photo by Joe Alexander

The game was an exhibition for Arkansas-Fort Smith (1-8) and did not count on the team’s win-loss record. Guard Roland McCoy scored 13 for the Lions, who had lost five straight coming into San Antonio, including a 75-62 setback on Saturday in Odessa against UT-Permian Basin.

Given the travel schedule and the quick turnaround for the Lions, a noon start on Sunday in South Texas, it was something of a surprise to see them within single digits of the Division I Roadrunners for most of the first half.

In fact, in the final 15 minutes of the opening period, Arkansas-Fort Smith outscored UTSA, 24-19. As a result, the Roadrunners led by only seven at halftime.

“I didn’t know they played yesterday,” Linguard said. “That was big. They came out with some energy. Kind of got us off (our game) a little bit.”

Isaiah Wyatt. UTSA men's basketball beat Arkansas-Fort Smith 93-60 on Sunday, Dec. 10, 2023, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Roadrunners newcomer Isaiah Wyatt hit five three-point shots en route to 20 points against the Lions from the Division II Lone Star Conference. – Photo by Joe Alexander

The Lions even made it interesting in the early going following intermission, pulling to within three after two minutes of play. From there, the Roadrunners decided that enough was enough, outscoring the Lions 56-26 the rest of the way.

“Second half was a lot better than the first,” UTSA coach Steve Henson said. “I thought we were getting quality shots the entire game. I mean, it was obvious the way they were guarding our spacing, the shots were going to be available. I didn’t have any issue with that, early on.

“Early in the half in a timeout, I said this could be a game where we could get another single-digit turnover night. Then the rest of the half, we did not do a very good job of taking care of the basketball. So that was a little disappointing, in the first half, our value of the basketball.”

In the second half, the Roadrunners did much better in that area, turning it over only three times in one of their better stretches of the season. After intermission, they connected on 21 of 39 shots from the field, including a sizzling 13 of 24 from the 3-point arc.

Perhaps fittingly, the 19 triples broke a three-year-old school record. The previous high was 18 made against the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs on Jan. 9, 2020. The 47 attempts also went into the school records as the most in a game since the Roadrunners shot 44 long balls at Southern Miss on Jan. 6, 2018.

“We started knocking down shots,” said Wyatt, who has scored 27 and 20 in his last two games. “That’s the big (difference, from the first half). I hit some down the stretch. We started finding each other. Tuck (Christian Tucker) started finding open players. Dre hit a big one out of the corner. Just really, everyone getting in a rhythm.”

Records

Arkansas Fort-Smith 1-8
UTSA 5-4

Coming up

UTSA at Little Rock, Wednesday, 6:30 p.m.
UTSA at Oregon State, Sunday, Dec. 17, 2 p.m.

Notable

UTSA played without starting guard Adante’ Holiman, who was sidelined with concussion symptoms. Holiman, one of UTSA’s leading scorers and a three-point threat, was hurt in practice last Thursday. With Holiman out, it raised some eyebrows that UTSA finished with 19 threes on a startling 47 attempts from deep. Linguard and Wyatt both hit five three-pointers and Christian Tucker had four of them.

Christian Tucker. UTSA men's basketball beat Arkansas-Fort Smith 93-60 on Sunday, Dec. 10, 2023, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

With Adante’ Holiman out, Christian Tucker played well, producing 17 points, six assists and three steals. Tucker, a career 39.7 percent shooter, made five of nine from the field including four threes. – Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA’s offense is averaging 89.7 points in its last three outings, wins over Incarnate Word, Lamar and Arkansas-Fort Smith. Holiman’s status for UTSA’s next game at Little Rock on Wednesday is uncertain. Little Rock (4-6) plays in the Division I Sun Belt Conference. The Trojans lost at home on Sunday, falling to the Winthrop (S.C.) Eagles.

Last year, Japhet Medor and John Buggs III played in the same backcourt for the UTSA Roadrunners. In the offseason, Medor transferred to play for the Fordham University Rams of the Atlantic 10 Conference. Buggs also moved on, taking his game to Denton to play for the North Texas Mean Green. On Sunday in New York City, they played each other, with Medor and Fordham beating Buggs and North Texas, 60-59. Medor had eight points and four assists for the Rams (5-5). Buggs produced eight points and four rebounds for the Mean Green (5-4).

PJ Carter. UTSA men's basketball beat Arkansas-Fort Smith 93-60 on Sunday, Dec. 10, 2023, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Guard PJ Carter helped fuel UTSA’s second-half outburst with 10 points and two threes. He finished the game with 11 points, five rebounds and five assists off the bench. – Photo by Joe Alexander

After eight games, UTSA’s Henson sees ‘so much room for improvement’

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Christian Tucker. UTSA defeated Incarnate Word (UIW) 90-80 in a non-conference men's basketball game at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Guard Christian Tucker, a junior from Chandler, Ariz., averages team-bests of 12.5 points and six assists for the UTSA Roadrunners. – File photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Winners of two straight games and three in their last four, the UTSA Roadrunners have plowed through final exam week, and now they’re looking ahead to a home game on Sunday at noon against the Arkansas-Fort Smith Lions.

It’ll be the first outing for the Roadrunners (4-4) since they rallied in the second half on Nov. 30 to score an 86-83 home win in men’s college basketball against the Lamar Cardinals.

Since then, the emphasis off the floor has been on finals for the fall semester. On the floor, the Roadrunners have been through five practices, and they’ll work out one more time on Saturday afternoon before hosting the Lions of the Lone Star Conference on Sunday.

“We’re trying to get more activity defensively,” UTSA coach Steve Henson said following a Friday afternoon workout. “I feel like our defensive numbers should be better. Not bad breakdowns. Just feel like there’s opportunities to be more active. More deflections. Covering more ground. Ball pressure and deflections, primarily.”

At one stage of the workout, Henson stressed the importance of his players getting out to the shooters at the three-point line — without fouling.

“Yeah, all of that,” he said. “Ball pressure. Activity off the ball. Getting to the shooters and exaggerating the contests. The difference between a good contest and a great contest helps your field goal percentage. Just do a little more. A little more on each possession.”

Trying to mesh a massive influx of newcomers to the team since June, the Roadrunners started off the regular season slowly, losing three of their first four games. All three of the losses were on the road, at Minnesota, Lamar and Texas State.

They’ve since won three of four, including recent home wins against Incarnate Word (90-80) and Lamar (86-83). In both games, UTSA fell behind but cranked up the offense enough to win.

Fueled by two three-point buckets from center Carlton Linguard, Jr., the Roadrunners went on a 12-0 run late in the second half to take down the Lamar Cardinals.

Regardless, the losses to Lamar on the road and another loss to Jacksonville State (Ala.) at home did not sit well with Henson and his coaches. In both of those games, extra effort could have made a difference in the outcome.

“We should have a better record right now,” Henson said. “We should have done some things to give ourselves a chance to win a couple of those ball games that we didn’t. Disappointed with that. Obviously, (there’s) no panic from a players’ standpoint. We feel like there’s just so much room for improvement.

“We’re seeing improvement in certain areas. We need drastic improvement in other areas. I think players are taking a pretty mature approach to it. They understand that we got to do things better. I think they’re a little more comfortable with each other … We’re learning more about each other.”

The learning process continued this week, with only one glitch. Starting point guard Adante’ Holiman was hurt at practice on Thursday and had to sit out Friday’s workout with concussion symptoms, the coach said. His status for Sunday is uncertain.

Other than Holiman’s mishap, the week went pretty well as far as the coaches were concerned. Competition at practice on Friday was fierce at times between athletes who have been playing consistent minutes in the first eight games going against others who, for a variety of reasons, are not in the rotation at the moment.

One of those players who stood out was Blessing Adesipe, a 6-foot-6 power forward from Alief-Hastings in the Houston area, who played the last two seasons at Miles College in Montana. Last year, Adesipe averaged 21.6 points and 9.9 rebounds to earn honorable mention junior college All America honors.

In his first season with the Roadrunners, he hasn’t played yet after starting the season rehabilitating a minor knee injury.

On Friday afternoon, however, Adesipe made his mark on a few plays, in particular. Once, he flashed inside and went airborne to rebound a ball in traffic among taller players. On another possession, he pulled up and drained a three from about three feet behind the arc.

Blessing Adesipe at UTSA men's basketball practice on Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2023, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Power forward Blessing Adesipe hasn’t played yet this season, but he had a strong workout Friday afternoon at the Convocation Center. – File photo by Joe Alexander

Others who had good days were Justin Thomas, Juan Reyna and Jordan Ivy-Curry — all of them out this season because of NCAA transfer rules.

“The second unit, guys that are trying to simulate the opponent, they’re doing a good job,” Henson said. “It’s a good talent level. You know, Juan does a heck of a job in a lot of areas. Juice (Ivy-Curry) obviously can score the basketball, and he’s a handful. Justin is so natural (of a talent), and Blessing’s getting some of his explosiveness back. Massal (Diouf) is feeling good again.”

Henson said he has had conversations with Adesipe (pronounced A-Day-sha-Pay) about whether he would be open to sitting out as a redshirt. “We’ve had conversations about it,” the coach said. “I think he could help us. It’s just a matter of, is he going to get enough minutes? We’ve had open conversations about it.”

On one hand, Adesipe is a good player. He has talent. But since part of the season has already been played and since UTSA has assembled significant depth at the power forward position, sitting out to save eligibility could be helpful to him in the long term.

“Blessing is a guy who really seems to enjoy being here,” Henson said. “I don’t think he’s got any real resistance to it. Most guys, when it’s all said and done, typically are glad when they do redshirt. Rarely have we had someone redshirt and said they wish they hadn’t.

“A lot of guys, you talk to them and they say they don’t want to do it, and then when their career is over, they say they wish they had (redshirted). So, it’s an ongoing conversation.”

Coming up

Arkansas-Fort Smith at UTSA, Sunday at noon.

Records

Arkansas-Fort Smith 1-7
UTSA 4-4

December schedule

12 — Arkansas-Fort Smith at UTSS, noon
13 — UTSA at Little Rock, 6:30 p.m.
17 — UTSA at Oregon State, 2 p.m.
21 — Army West Point at UTSA, 7 p.m.
28 — Prairie View A&M at UTSA, 7 p.m.

Notable

UTSA plays its first American Athletic Conference game on Jan. 2 when it hosts the UAB Blazers at the Convocation Center. The first AAC road game is Jan. 6 in Houston against the Rice Owls.

Coleman scores 23 as UTSA rolls past the UTEP Miners, 90-66

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Elyssa Coleman. UTSA beat UTEP 90-66 in women's basketball at the Convocation Center on Sunday, Dec. 3, 2023. - Photo by Joe Alexander

The Roadrunners improved to 5-3 on the season after Elyssa Coleman produced a career-high 23 points, while also snaring eight rebounds, in a 24-point victory over the UTEP Miners Sunday afternoon.- Photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Elyssa Coleman and the UTSA Roadrunners hated the feeling that they had a few days ago after losing at home to the Texas State Bobcats.

They made amends on Sunday afternoon at the Convocation Center, rolling to a season-high in points with a 90-66 victory over the UTEP Miners.

As Coleman poured in a career-high 23, the Roadrunners shot 58.3 percent from the field and routed the Miners in front of an announced crowd of 926. Coleman also pulled down eight rebounds in perhaps her best game in three years at UTSA.

Siena Guttadauro. UTSA beat UTEP 90-66 in women's basketball at the Convocation Center on Sunday, Dec. 3, 2023. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Siena Guttadauro scored 12 points on four-of-five shooting from 3-point distance. Over her last two games, the sharpshooter from California has scored 23 points on seven threes. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Last Thursday night, UTSA tipped off against the Bobcats after returning home from a four-game road swing. The result wasn’t what the Roadrunners wanted, a 65-57 loss in overtime.

Coleman said the outcome stung the players, who were still angry about it when they left the arena.

“(We) knew that wasn’t our 100 percent (best) effort,” she said. “That’s what we came out here and did today. We showed 100 percent effort.”

Against UTEP, UTSA attacked early and never slowed down. The Roadrunners led 26-13 at the end of one quarter, by 48-31 at intermission and by as many as 29 points late in the game.

Coleman paced the Roadrunners with 11 of 13 shooting from the field, including nine for 10 in the first half when she scored 19 points.

Five of her first-half field goals were from the perimeter, including one from the corner that counted as a three-pointer just before intermission.

“I got lucky,” she said. “I been praying a lot, and it’s Sunday. It’s God’s day. So that’s what I’m (attributing) it to.”

Coleman said UTSA players also found inspiration in a post-game event for Mia Perez, a 10-year-old cancer patient. The Roadrunners had a signing ceremony of sorts to welcome her to the team.

Actually, the players have known Perez since the beginning of last season.

“She’s here almost every home game,” Coleman said. “We’ve seen her at some football games when our whole team goes. We’ll have little events for her when we have time. In the preseason, we probably hang out with her more, probably once every two weeks.”

Sidney Love. UTSA beat UTEP 90-66 in women's basketball at the Convocation Center on Sunday, Dec. 3, 2023. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Point guard Sidney Love had another solid game with 16 points and seven assists. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Coleman said Perez’s presence on Sunday gave the Roadrunners a lift.

“Mia’s perseverance in her journey is nothing that we would ever come close to on the court,” Coleman said. “So I feel like, if she can do that, then what is basketball? It shouldn’t be that hard.”

Several other Roadrunners played well against the Miners, notably point guard Sidney Love, who had 16 points, seven assists and five rebounds. Kyra White, another starter, had 12 points and seven assists. Siena Guttadauro, playing the role of spark plug off the bench, also pumped in 12 points and hit four of five from the 3-point arc.

As a team, UTSA sank 44.4 percent from three (eight of 18) and 80 percent from the free-throw line (12 of 15).

A player that caught UTSA coach Karen Aston’s eye was 6-foot-4 center Nissa Sam-Grant, who had four points, three rebounds and three blocked shots in 14 minutes.

“I thought she was pretty decent tonight,” the coach said.

Last season, Sam-Grant was in school and practicing with the team, but she did not play in games. Working out in those practice sessions last season, the Canada native first raised eyebrows with her potential.

Nissa Sam-Grant. UTSA beat UTEP 90-66 in women's basketball at the Convocation Center on Sunday, Dec. 3, 2023. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Nissa Sam-Grant posted career highs of 14 minutes and three blocked shots. – Photo by Joe Alexander

But as this season started, she has has not played much — only in five games, in which she has averaged five minutes.

“We kind of expected more at the beginning (of this season), than what she was giving us,” Aston said, “but I think some of that is, she just sat out for a long time. It’s taken her awhile to get into game mode and really kind of push herself.

“Kids get kind of stagnant when they sit out for awhile. I think we’re starting to see some glimpses of what I thought she could do for our team. Hopefully this gives her some confidence.”

Guard Aaliyah Stanton led UTEP with 17 points, three assists and three steals.

Records

UTSA 5-3
UTEP 4-5

Coming up

Houston at UTSA, Dec. 14, 6 p.m.

Kyleigh Aguirre. UTSA beat UTEP 90-66 in women's basketball at the Convocation Center on Sunday, Dec. 3, 2023. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Senior Kyleigh McGuire had four points and four rebounds in seven minutes – Photo by Joe Alexander

Notable

UTSA women’s basketball is finally starting to string together some consistent winning over a period of months. Since Jan. 28 of last season, the Roadrunners have fashioned a record of 14-7.

Last spring, they went 9-4 to the end of the season. This season, they have tacked on a 5-3 record. Two of the losses were on the road at Power 5 programs (Arizona State and Texas Tech).

Jordyn Jenkins, who led UTSA with 20.6 points a game last year, still has not played this season as she attempts to come back from a knee injury. Before games, Jenkins has been engaged in some light shooting drills with a coach but does not participate in warmups with her teammates. UTSA coach Karen Aston said “we’re still a little bit away” from her return to practice or games.

“She’s looking real good but we’re not going to rush her,” the coach said. “Too many people rush kids back, and that’s not our intention with her. There’s no timeline right now.”

UTSA senior Hailey Atwood was honored last summer with a Teammate of the Year award by Team Impact for her efforts in befriending Mia Perez. Team Impact is a nonprofit that pairs collegiate athletes with kids with disabilities or severe illnesses. Both Atwood and Perez traveled to Boston last June to be recognized.

The Roadrunners’ scoring total against the Miners was the program’s highest since 2017. UTSA hadn’t hit the 90-point mark in a game since Nov. 10, 2017. On that day, the Roadrunners downed Division III Sul Ross, 97-47. In the previous season, on Feb. 25, 2017, the Roadrunners won at home against a Division I opponent, the FAU Owls, by a score of 97-66.

JB’s video replay

UTSA rallies from 10 down in the second half to beat Lamar, 86-83

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Guard Isaiah Wyatt scored a career-high 27 points as the UTSA Roadrunners improved to 3-1 in their last four games. The 6-foot-4 Wyatt transferred into UTSA in the offseason after playing last year at Division II Chadron State (Neb.) – Photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Seven-foot center Carlton Linguard Jr. hit two three-pointers in the final two minutes Thursday night as the UTSA Roadrunners came out of a second-half offensive lull just in time, rallying past the Lamar Cardinals, 86-83, at the Convocation Center.

“We played together collectively to get this win,” said Isaiah Wyatt, who led the Roadrunners with a career-high of 27 points. “The biggest thing is, when we went through the drought, we played defense. We got a bunch of stops and Carl hit some big threes at the end. Also Dre (Fuller was) grabbing rebounds, giving us second chances. That helped us.”

In a back-and-forth affair, UTSA surged to a 12-point lead in the first half, only to see Lamar go on a run and lead by as many as 10 in the second half.

Carlton Linguard Jr. UTSA beat Lamar 86-83 in non-conference men's basketball on Thursday, Nov. 30, 2023, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Carlton Linguard Jr. finished with 16 points, made a season-high four three-pointers and blocked four shots. – Photo by Joe Alexander

A 3-pointer by Cody Pennebaker lifted the Cardinals into a 67-57 advantage with 7:29 remaining. A few minutes later, Ja’Sean Jackson from San Antonio’s Wagner High School nailed a long trey to keep the Cardinals in front by eight.

In the end, UTSA didn’t fold. Adante’ Holiman answered Jackson’s shot with a three of his own. Linguard, playing his first season of basketball since 2021-22 at Kansas State, nailed two long balls in a decisive 12-0 run. The second one with 35.4 seconds remaining lifted the Roadrunners into an 81-77 lead.

The Roadrunners, who have won three of their last four games, never trailed again. “I felt like the whole team had a chip on our shoulder,” Linguard said, recalling UTSA’s 90-82 loss to Lamar in Beaumont on Nov. 14. “Second half, we kept pushing. We kept fighting.”

UTSA coach Steve Henson credited his players for maintaining their effort to the end. “We just hung in there and hung in there and made enough plays to pull it out,” he said.

Wyatt was on fire early. He hit six of his seven three-point baskets in the first half and scored 21 as UTSA built a 44-38 intermission lead. Linguard finished with 16 points and four blocked shots. In an impressive show by the big man, he hit four of six from three.

Christian Tucker finished with 13 points and 11 assists.

Records

Lamar 4-4
UTSA 4-4

Coming up

Arkansas-Fort Smith at UTSA, Dec. 10, at noon.

Christian Tucker. UTSA beat Lamar 86-83 in non-conference men's basketball on Thursday, Nov. 30, 2023, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Junior point guard Christian Tucker scored nine points in the second half. He finished with 13 points and a career-high 11 assists for the first double double of his career. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Texas State women surge late to down UTSA, 65-57, in overtime

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Tiffany Tullis. Texas State beat UTSA 65-57 in overtime in women's basketball on Thursday, Nov. 30, 2023, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Texas State forward Tiffany Tullis, who played in high school at Cornerstone Christian in San Antonio, had 12 points and nine rebounds as the Bobcats won their sixth straight in the I-35 series against the UTSA Roadrunners. – Photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The UTSA Roadrunners are most definitely on the upswing in women’s basketball, but the Texas State Bobcats remain firmly in control in the I-35 rivalry.

Paced by guard Timia Jefferson, Texas State pulled away in the last four minutes Thursday night to down error-prone UTSA, 65-57, in overtime.

The Bobcats broke from a tie and outscored the Roadrunners 11-3 down the stretch to secure the victory in front of an announced 500 fans at the Convocation Center.

“It’s a lot of fun,” Texas State coach Zenarae Antoine said outside the team bus. “This particular game’s special, for us, because we really needed to find our way through adversity in a close game. Our last two games were really close, right. Back and forth and then the opponent pulled away. That’s both at home against Sam Houston and on the road at (Texas A&M) Corpus (Christi).”

Texas State has won six straight against UTSA in the series. UTSA hasn’t prevailed in the game against its regional rival since 2016.

In the latest dust-up on hardwood between schools separated by about 50 miles, a crowd announced at 500 filled most of both lower-level grandstands.

“We were excited to be home,” UTSA coach Karen Aston said. “I’m just disappointed we didn’t perform at a more urgent level. Like, we looked like we were too cool for how competitive the game was. I was disappointed for that, because we’re home, and you want to show out for your home fans. But, sometimes you have to get slapped around a little bit to change some things you do.

Elyssa Coleman. Texas State beat UTSA 65-57 in overtime in women's basketball on Thursday, Nov. 30, 2023, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Center Elyssa Coleman led the Roadrunners with 11 points and nine rebounds against the Bobcats – Photo by Joe Alexander

“Some of it is, we’ve got some young players who haven’t been in this situation, and the only way for them to learn is to play.”

Jefferson paced Texas State with 15 points, including a team-high five in the OT. Two former San Antonio-area high school players also played key roles. Forwards Tiffany Tullis (from Cornerstone) had 12 points and nine rebounds and Jaylin Foster (from Steele) notched a double double, producing 10 points and 11 boards.

Asked about what stood out for her in the overtime, Tullis said it was “locking down on the defense” and rebounding. “Not letting them get second opportunities,” she said.

UTSA entered the Texas State game on the heels of a 3-1 road swing through Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, UT Arlington, Texas Tech and Sam Houston State, with the only loss a close one (by five points) in Lubbock at Tech.

To beat the Roadrunners, a good team and also a long-time foe of the Bobcats, was meaningful to Tullis.

“This is my first time hearing about the rivalry, so it’s pretty awesome to win against a team they had been going against for years,” Tullis said.

The Roadrunners came from 15 down to win in Corpus Christi and from 11 behind to beat Sam Houston. They fell behind by nine in the first half against the Bobcats but couldn’t produce their magic this time.

UTSA may have been its own worst enemy at the end, shooting two for eight from the field and committing three turnovers in the overtime.

After Foster scored on a driving layup for the Bobcats, Sidney Love answered with one of her own to bring the Roadrunners to within 61-57 with 51 seconds remaining.

At that point, the UTSA offense went cold and Texas State took advantage. Jefferson hit three of her team’s free throws at the end to help the visitors close the deal.

For the Roadrunners, center Elyssa Coleman had 11 points and nine rebounds. Love scored 11 and passed for three assists. Siena Guttadauro also scored 11 off the bench. Guttadauro knocked down three 3-point baskets for the Roadrunners.

Records

Texas State 4-2
UTSA 4-3

First half

Playing strong defense, the Texas State Bobcats forced six UTSA turnovers in the first quarter and raced to a seven-point advantage and then held on in the second period, to hold a 28-25 lead at the intermission.

Notable

At least six players from high schools in the San Antonio area — two from Texas State and four from UTSA — played in the game at the UTSA Convocation Center. Texas State started Tiffany Tullis from Cornerstone and Jaylin Foster from Steele on the front line. UTSA started Kyra White from Judson, Sidney Love from Steele and Aysia Proctor from Clemens in the backcourt. UTSA also came off the bench with guard Alexis Parker from Brandeis.

Sidney Love. Texas State beat UTSA 65-57 in overtime in women's basketball on Thursday, Nov. 30, 2023, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Guard Sidney Love hit five of 10 shots from the field and scored 11 points for the Roadrunners. – Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA men need to ‘keep building’ in a rematch with Lamar

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PJ Carter. UTSA defeated Incarnate Word (UIW) 90-80 in a non-conference men's basketball game at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Guard PJ Carter came off the bench to average 13 points on 50 percent shooting in home games last week against Jacksonville State and Incarnate Word. He scored a season-high 17 against UIW last Saturday afternoon. – Photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Last week, the hot-and-cold nature of UTSA Roadrunners men’s basketball was on full display. Two victories in a three-game stretch. A few minutes of cohesive play at one moment in time, followed by a stretch of mind-boggling inconsistency.

During a two-point victory at Houston Christian University, a head-scratching 15-point home loss to Jacksonville (Ala.) State and a bounce-back victory 24 hours later on the same floor against Incarnate Word, attention to detail on defense would come and go.

The UTSA offense would click nicely in one 10-minute stretch, and then it would suddenly short-circuit and stagnate.

“We’re still searching offensively,” UTSA coach Steve Henson said after knocking off Incarnate Word, 90-80, on Saturday afternoon. “We’ve got to identify … what can we expect every night. With Adante’ (Holiman) and Dre (Fuller), we need those guys to be playmakers, in addition to (being scorers). We need an occasional post up. We need a back door. Just keep building. As we learn more about our team, I hope our offense will get better.”

Coming off their first two-win week of the season, the Roadrunners will return to action tonight at the UTSA Convocation Center. First, Coach Karen Aston’s women’s team hosts the Texas State Bobcats at 5 p.m. Next up, Henson’s men’s team will take on the Lamar Cardinals at 8 p.m.

The men’s game will serve as an opportunity for UTSA (3-4) to take another crack at Lamar (4-3). It’s a chance for the Roadrunners to show some growth after allowing the Cardinals to clobber them on the boards and on the scoreboard on Nov. 14 in Beaumont.

In the earlier meeting, Lamar registered a 90-82 victory. In that game, a smaller and quicker team out-hustled UTSA in winning the rebounding battle, 57-45. On the offensive glass, the Cardinals claimed a shocking 25-12 advantage. Not even a 22-point explosion from UTSA guard Holiman could make up the difference.

Tonight in the rematch, the Roadrunners will need to contain the Cardinals duo of 6-foot-9 Adam Hamilton and 6-6 Terry Anderson, who combined for 13 offensive boards between them. The two also combined for 36 points. Meanwhile, UTSA will also need to keep an eye on guards B.B. Knight and Ja’Sean Jackson.

Jackson, from San Antonio’s Wagner High School, hurt UTSA at the end of both halves. In the first half, he made a 45-foot, three-pointer at the buzzer. In the last few minutes of the game, he created a layup by dishing for an assist and then knocked down four straight free throws to ice the victory.

Tonight

Texas State at UTSA women, 5 p.m.
Lamar at UTSA men, 8 p.m.

Coming up

The UTSA women (4-2) are playing two games in four days. After tonight’s game against the Bobcats (3-2), they’ll host the UTEP Miners at noon on Sunday before they take a pause in the schedule. They won’t play again until they host the Houston Cougars on Dec. 14.

For the UTSA men, the Lamar game is the last one they’ll play until after the break. They’ll be back on the court for a Dec. 10 home game against Arkansas-Fort Smith.

Notable

Doing a couple of things more consistently, running consistent offense to get open looks on long-distance shots and generating easy baskets, might solve a lot of problems for the UTSA men. As it is, they’re shooting 40.8 percent from the field for the season. The percentage ranks 13th of 14 teams in the American Athletic Conference. The Roadrunners are hitting only 30.1 percent from three, which ranks 10th. UTSA has made only 52 threes in seven games, for an average of 7.43. They hit a season-high 10 against UIW.

UTSA women start fast this fall in wake of ‘painful’ summer workouts

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Maya Linton. UTSA beat Florida Atlantic 77-61 in Conference USA women's basketball on Thursday, Feb. 23, 2023, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Sophomore forward Maya Linton produced a double double with 15 points and 10 rebounds in a Nov. 18 victory at UT Arlington, She is shown here in action last season against the FAU Owls. – Photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

One of the hottest summers on record in San Antonio added an extra layer of adversity to offseason training for the UTSA women’s basketball team.

UTSA forward Maya Linton says that the morning workouts, held both indoors and outdoors, were competitive with players split into two teams.

“It was very bittersweet because it was painful at the time — and it was hard,” Linton said. “But if you look back you say, ‘Hey, we really needed that to succeed right now.’ ”

Lately, the proof is in the results.

Playing without their best player, injured forward Jordyn Jenkins, the Roadrunners have opened the season with a 4-2 record leading into Thursday’s 5 p.m. home game against the Texas State Bobcats.

In addition, UTSA is 3-2 on the road in that stretch, matching the team’s road win total for all of last season. At Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, the Roadrunners rallied from a 15-point, third-quarter deficit to win in overtime.

At Sam Houston State, last Saturday afternoon, UTSA fell into another hole, falling behind by 11 at the end of the third period. Kyra White and Sidney Love keyed a 30-point fourth-quarter as the Roadrunners pulled it out, 63-56.

“I wouldn’t say I’m surprised, by any means,” UTSA coach Karen Aston said. “Obviously, with plugging in new lineups and new players and getting to know how they’re going to react to game situations, it’s been a work in progress and it still is.

“But I wouldn’t necessarily say I’m surprised. I wish that we would get off to better starts and not dig holes like we have in a couple of games. But that’s part of being on the road, I think.”

Aston said in the weeks leading into the season that her players had a chance to experience some growth with Jenkins out of the lineup. As it has turned out, post players such as Elyssa Coleman, Idara Udo and Linton have all stepped up to play significant roles.

“There’s no question that opportunity presents itself all the time,” the coach said. “I say this a lot in basketball, and I guess in life it kind of applies, that windows open and they close. What you do with the opportunity and what you do with your time when a window does open, it’s important.”

While Udo has filled in the gaps in the rotation on the front line, another freshman, guard Aysia Proctor, has emerged to supply some timely offense. Proctor is shooting 61 percent from the field.

“We’ve had some freshmen contribute heavily,” Aston said. “I’ve said this all along that the players that returned have improved in some areas that they needed to. We’re still absolutely a work in progress just because we are really young. When you look at who comes off the bench, it’s pretty much all freshmen and sophomores.”

UTSA’s only two losses have come against Power 5 competition, losing by 15 at Arizona State on opening night and by five at Texas Tech last week. Linton said she is excited about the way the team has performed.

“I think we’re more determined to be a unit this year than we were last year,” she said. “So I feel like winning all these games at the beginning of the season, it’s a different look for us, and we’re excited about our future and to be back at our home.”

Linton, a sophomore from Duncanville, had a big game with 15 points and 10 rebounds in a four-point win at UT Arlington. She scored six points in the final three minutes of the first half just as the Mavs were making a push.

Referencing the comeback wins in Corpus Christi and Huntsville, Linton credited the Roadrunners for staying together even when they aren’t playing well.

“Like I say, I think we have a certain unity,” she said. “We just have a connection. It’s like we never have a feeling that, ‘Oh, this time we’re going to lose.’ It’s always a positive, like we’re going to win, no matter what. I think there’s more of a fight this year, and it definitely shows with our record.”

Notebook

The UTSA women are off to their fastest start since the fall of 2012 when they were 5-1 after six games. In 2012, all of the early victories were at home, and one of them came against a sub-Division I level program.

UTSA went on to finish 16-14 in 2012-13, in its one and only season in the Western Athletic Conference.

This fall, all six of UTSA’s games have been contested against D-I opponents. Like in 2012, the Roadrunners are set to play this season in a new conference – the American Athletic Conference — after 10 seasons in Conference USA.

Sophomore Sidney Love leads the Roadrunners in scoring at 13.3 points and also leads the AAC in free-throw percentage (87.9).

Senior Kyra White, who ranks second in the AAC in minutes played at 36 per game, is enjoying a standout season by averaging 11.8 points and 5.5 rebounds. She’s also averaging 3.7 assists (tied for sixth in the conference) and 1.2 steals.

Junior Elyssa Coleman averages 8.0 points, 5.8 rebounds and a conference-leading 2.3 blocks. Coleman has played six games with six starts in the post, with Linton (6.7 points, 6.2 rebounds) playing six and starting five.

Idara Udo (5.8 points, 7.0 rebounds) and Aysia Proctor (8.0 points, 5.0 rebounds) have emerged as players making a significant impact in their first years out of high school.

UTSA’s Holiman: ‘We knew we had to bounce back. It was a bounce-back game for us.’

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Adante' Holiman. UTSA defeated Incarnate Word (UIW) 90-80 in a non-conference men's basketball game at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Adante’ Holiman scored 17 of his 21 points in the second half as the UTSA Roadrunners pulled away from the UIW Cardinals for a 90-80 victory. – Photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special to The JB Replay

The UTSA Roadrunners lost Friday afternoon at home by 15 points and felt horribly about it. But they weren’t about to allow a bad-hair experience against Jacksonville State (Ala.) turn into two homecourt losses in two days.

After trailing for most of the first half Saturday against the University of the Incarnate Word, they broke from a tie score and stormed to a 90-80 victory at the Convocation Center.

Carlton Linguard Jr. UTSA defeated Incarnate Word (UIW) 90-80 in a non-conference men's basketball game at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA center Carlton Linguard Jr. came off the bench for 16 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks. – Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA shot 54 percent from the field and hit eight three-point shots after intermission to secure the win.

Sophomore guard Adante’ Holiman, who hit five threes and scored 17 of his team-high 21 points in the second half, said players knew what had to be done from the moment they arrived at the Convo for the morning film session.

“We knew we had to bounce back,” he said. “It was a bounce-back game for us. Today was a day to prove ourselves. That was the mindset of the whole team.”

The two programs are the only ones in San Antonio playing in NCAA Division I. While UTSA is more established, having competed in D-I for more than 42 years, UIW is entering only its 11th season at the highest level.

Coming in riding a three-game winning streak, the Cardinals were clearly energized and intent on beating the Roadrunners for the first time in school history.

During warmups, they were chanting and clapping. When the game started, they started to defend and run and score, riding the inspired play of guard Sky Wicks to build as much as an eight-point lead at 19-11.

“I thought there’d be some pace to the game,” UTSA coach Steve Henson said. “Thought we’d have some opportunities in transition, but we had to take care of the basketball. We turned it over nine times in the first half, and you saw what happened.”

What happened was, UIW kept blunting UTSA’s efforts to get the ball into the paint and ran off all the broken plays at a frenetic pace.

At the end of the first stanza, UTSA rallied to tie it, 43-43. Second half? It was a different story completely after intermission as the Roadrunners settled down and started to run better offense.

In general, the ball moved better, players seemed to relax and play with more fluidity, and the shots just started to fall. Particularly for Holiman, a 6-foot transfer from UT Rio Grande Valley.

Holiman, who was 0 for 3 from the three-point arc in the first half, responded in the final 20 minutes to knock down 5 of 9 from distance.

By the time it was over, five Roadrunners finished in double figures, including Holiman, PJ Carter (17), Carlton Linguard Jr. (16), Christian Tucker (11) and Isaiah Wyatt (10).

Coming off the bench, Linguard was a force defensively, blocking three shots. The 7-footer from Stevens High School in San Antonio also pulled down 10 rebounds, including six on the offensive end.

Wicks led UIW with 24 points on 10 of 26 shooting from the field. Josh Morgan scored 16 points on 6 of 9 shooting. Dylan Hayman added 13 and Elijah Davis 10.

Records

UIW 3-3
UTSA 3-4

Coming up

UIW vs. Jacksonville State (Ala.), Sunday, 3 p.m., at UTSA
Lamar at UTSA, Thursday, 8 p.m.

Sky Wicks. UTSA defeated Incarnate Word (UIW) 90-80 in a non-conference men's basketball game at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Guard Sky Wicks had 24 points, 11 rebounds and five assists for the UIW Cardinals. Wicks also had four steals. – Photo by Joe Alexander