Tag Archives: UTSA Roadrunners

Roadrunners end six-game skid by downing the FIU Panthers

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Dhieu Deing. UTSA beat Florida International 73-66 on Thursday, Jan. 27, 2022, at the Convocation Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA’s Erik Czumbel embraces Dhieu Deing after a play late in the game as the Roadrunners hold off the FIU Panthers 73-66 at the Convocation Center. Deing had 19 points in his first game back after leaving the squad in the first week of January. – Photo by Joe Alexander

The losing streak is over. UTSA ended a troublesome six-game skid Thursday night by battling from behind in the second half to take down the FIU Panthers, 73-66.

As a bonus, the Roadrunners notched their first win in Conference USA this season. “We needed it badly,” UTSA coach Steve Henson said. “There’s no secret about it.”

The streak was the longest in Henson’s six years at UTSA and the longest overall since the Roadrunners lost nine in a row near the end of 2015-16, which was the last season in Brooks Thompson’s tenure as coach.

Jacob Germany. UTSA beat Florida International 73-66 on Thursday, Jan. 27, 2022, at the Convocation Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

Playing against a 7-foot-1 center, UTSA post Jacob Germany scored 11 points and pulled down eight rebounds in the second half. He had 23 and 11 for the game. – Photo by Joe Alexander

In facing FIU, a big and physical C-USA East Division team with a winning record, 6-foot-11 center Jacob Germany produced a double-double with 23 points and 11 rebounds.

Dhieu Deing added 19 points, including 15 in the second half. Jordan Ivy-Curry supplied 17 points, four rebounds and three assists as UTSA won for the first time in 24 days.

It was Ivy-Curry’s first game since Jan. 8. He sat out the last four in Covid protocols. For Deing, it was his first game since Jan. 1. He left the team briefly and sat out seven games as he tried to decide whether to turn pro or remain in college.

The Roadrunners, fighting against an extended stream of adversity during the month of January, have seen the season come to an end for Cedrick Alley, Jr. and Aleu Aleu.

Alley is academically ineligible and Aleu has suffered a right knee injury that required surgery.

All that notwithstanding, two of the most severe blows to the team came with the loss of Deing and Ivy-Curry.

Without them, defenses keyed on Germany and clogged up the paint. Players who hadn’t been shooting the ball much were forced to look at the basket, with only mixed results.

Jordan Ivy-Curry. UTSA beat Florida International 73-66 on Thursday, Jan. 27, 2022, at the Convocation Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

Jordan Ivy-Curry scored 17 points in his first game back after sitting out four in Covid protocols. He hit a three with five minutes left that helped to fuel a late UTSA rally. – Photo by Joe Alexander

The Roadrunners were 1-6 without Deing (the only win coming against Dallas Christian) and 0-4 without both Deing an Ivy-Curry.

Deing, a 6-foot-5 junior transfer, said it “felt big” to earn the victory in his first game back.

“I prayed a lot on it,” he said. “I just felt like I couldn’t quit on my team like that. So, me, personally, I just (wanted to) do anything I could to win.”

Deing, who nailed three 3-point shots in the second half, said he thinks the difference down the stretch may have stemmed from the Roadrunners starting to learn how to play and pull together when the times get tough.

“Just, how are we going to fight adversity,” he said. “Basketball is about adversity, how are you going to fight it? We did it as a team, together.”

Deing actually had re-joined the team last week, but had to go into Covid protocols and ended up sitting out a couple of losses to the UTEP Miners, one on the road ane one at home.

Florida International's Clevon Brown is from San Antonio and Churchill High School. He had 12 points, 3 rebounds and 3 blocks on Thursday, Jan. 27, 2022, against UTSA. - photo by Joe Alexander

Former Churchill High School standout Clevon Brown had 12 points, three rebounds and three blocked shots for the FIU Panthers. – Photo by Joe Alexander

He described his return as emotional.

“I think they’re always going to be my brothers,” he said. “I apologized. I told him I was sorry I quit on ’em. I was just happy to come back and take some dubs with this team.”

In the aftermath of a road loss at UAB on the first day of the New Year, tensions mounted when the team got back home.

“I was just frustrated,” Deing said. “A lot of things going on. A lot of people in my ear. Just a lot of things going on. Just frustration.”

Deing sat out on Jan. 3 against Dallas Christian, and then UTSA released a statement on Jan. 6 saying that he wasn’t on the team and was looking at options in pro basketball.

In regard to his other options, Deing said he considered “a lot of things” but did not sign anything.

After FIU bell behind and trailed most of the first half, at one time by as many as 14 points, the Panthers gradually climbed back in the game after intermission and took the lead with 7:57 left.

With point guard Tevin Brewer orchestrating the attack, FIU continued to press the action and pushed the advantage to Five. A floater by Brewer made it 61-56 in favor of the Panthers with 5:26 remaining.

Darius McNeill. UTSA beat Florida International 73-66 on Thursday, Jan. 27, 2022, at the Convocation Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

Guard Darius McNeill takes it to the hoop for the Roadrunners. – Photo by Joe Alexander

From there, the Roadrunners pushed back. Consecutive 3-pointers from Ivy-Curry and Deing vaulted UTSA back on top by one point.

Down the stretch, UTSA benefited from plays by Germany and Erik Czumbel, who hit another three.

Both Deing and Ivy-Curry, at the line with one-and-one situations late, came up big by knocking down two free throws in each instance.

“Teams high in the standings are often times playing a lot of close games,” Henson said. “They’re just finding ways to win those ball games. We needed to get this one to reinforce that, to get it off our back and build on it.

“Kind of the message here is, keep building.”

Records

FIU 12-8, 2-5
UTSA 8-13, 1-7

Coming up

Saturday, FAU at UTSA, 1 p.m.

Notable

Germany was aggressive in pulling down five offensive rebounds, and he was efficient in hitting 10 of 18 shots. Coming against a team with a 7-foot-1 center (Seth Pinckney) and a few other wide-bodied forwards, it was clearly one of his better efforts of the season.

Quotable

“That’s Jacob,” Deing said. “He can come in and score 20 any day he want.”

Isaiah Addo-Ankrah and Jordan Ivy-Curry celebrate after Addo-Ankrah grabbed the final rebound of the game. UTSA beat Florida International 73-66 on Thursday, Jan. 27, 2022, at the Convocation Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

Isaiah Addo-Ankrah and Jordan Ivy-Curry celebrate after Addo-Ankrah grabbed the final rebound of the game. It was UTSA’s first win after 24 days and six straight losses. – Photo by Joe Alexander

With two scorers returning, UTSA hopes to end skid and beat FIU

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Another serious challenge awaits the slumping UTSA Roadrunners when they host the Florida International Panthers on Thursday night.

Riding high, FIU is coming off two Conference USA victories at home over the Marshall Thundering Herd and the the powerful Western Kentucky Hilltoppers.

Against Western Kentucky, the Panthers (12-7, 2-4) knocked down 16 three-point shots, including seven of them by players off their bench, and won 86-83.

But in the Roadrunners (7-13, 0-7), FIU may not see the faltering ball club that some might expect.

The Panthers likely will not encounter the player groupings that struggled so mightily to score last week in a pair of five-point losses, on the road and at home, to the UTEP Miners.

Losers of six straight, UTSA is expected to play both Dhieu Deing and Jordan Ivy-Curry after the two shot-making guards returned to practice this week. UTSA also will feature a rejuvenated Darius McNeill.

Decimated up and down the roster by Covid and sundry other issues, the Roadrunners called on McNeill to become a scoring threat against the Miners — and he delivered.

The senior from Houston averaged 19.5 points and 4.5 rebounds in the two losses.

McNeill, a transfer from SMU who started his career with two seasons at Cal, looked as confident and as aggressive as he has been all season.

UTSA coach Steve Henson said McNeill “just relaxed a little bit” and then benefited from increased playing time.

In getting McNeill to “take a deep breath,’ Henson said coaches “tried not to point out every little detail” in what they wanted from him.

“We tried to free his mind up a little more,” the coach said. “Just try to get him to go out there and relax and play.

“I think that started the process … Certainly, a lot of guys are more comfortable when they’re getting bigger minutes. That, certainly, helped him a lot.”

On Sunday, when the Roadrunners rallied in the second half, McNeill had the Miners on their heels, hitting 4 of 7 from the field and 6 of 7 at the free throw line.

“The opportunity for him to get to the rim was there,” Henson said. “The way they defended on the perimeter, it kind of opened up the paint for some driving opportunities.

“In the transition game, he had several bust outs on long rebounds or quick outlets when he was able to get down there and attack.

“A few weeks ago, he was finally taking a breath and relaxing. Our approach to coaching him maybe changed a little bit.

“Then I think just the extended minutes and having the ball in his hands a little more helped him.”

For the season, McNeill is shooting 44 percent from the field and is averaging only 6.6 points.

UTEP coach Joe Golding said McNeill caused problems with his athleticism and determination.

“Good player,” Golding said. “(He’s) obviously talented and has played at some high levels. You can tell he wants to win. You can tell he’s invested, and it means something to him.”

Coming up

Thursday — FIU at UTSA, 7 p.m.
Saturday — FAU at UTSA, 1 p.m.

Records

FIU 12-7, 2-4
UTSA 7-13, 0-7

Notable

UTSA traveled to El Paso last Thursday with eight players, six on scholarship. The Roadrunners got two players back from Covid protocols for the rematch in San Antonio on Sunday.

By Tuesday, they had Deing and McNeill on the floor together for the first time since December.

Deing had been away from the team for the last seven games as he tried to sort out whether he wanted to turn pro or remain as a college athlete. Ivy-Curry has been out the last four in Covid protocols.

Skid hits six

The Roadrunners haven’t won since Jan. 3 when they defeated Dallas Christian, 101-48, in a non-conference game at the Convocation Center.

Since then, they have lost to Southern Miss and Louisiana Tech (at home), Old Dominion and Charlotte (on the road) and to UTEP twice (on the road last Thursday, and then at home on Sunday).

The six-game skid is the longest in Henson’s six years as head coach. Previously, his teams suffered five-game losing streaks to start the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons.

It is the longest losing streak for a UTSA men’s basketball team since the Roadrunners dropped nine in a row near the end of the 2015-16 season, former coach Brooks Thompson’s last year at the school.

Scoring threats Deing, Ivy-Curry return to practice for UTSA

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Dhieu Deing. UTSA came from behind to beat IUPUI 60-57 on Wednesday at the Convocation Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

Guard Dhieu Deing has returned to practice with the UTSA Roadrunners. UTSA coach Steve Henson says it’s uncertain whether Deing will play at home Thursday night against the FIU Panthers. – File photo by Joe Alexander

Was that an air of optimism in the UTSA Convocation Center on Tuesday?

Or, was it just that confounded draft blowing through the old basketball arena when someone would enter through the doors on the north side of the building?

It might have been a little of both. But, whatever it was, the slumping Roadrunners had more players on the gym floor for practice than they’ve had in awhile.

Dhieu Deing (left) and Jordan Ivy-Curry go through drills at practice Tuesday afternoon. — Photo by Jerry Briggs

One of them was streak-shooting junior guard Dhieu Deing, who has been absent from practices and games for a little more than three weeks, reportedly not a part of the team as he considered options in the professional ranks.

Another player returning was sophomore guard Jordan Ivy-Curry, who has been out two weeks in Covid protocols.

UTSA coach Steve Henson said Ivy-Curry is expected to play when the Roadrunners, losers of six straight games, host the FIU Panthers Thursday night.

Whether Deing will play against the Panthers remains to be seen, the coach said.

“I can’t say on Dhieu yet,” Henson said. “Juice will play. I’m sure Juice will play. Unless something happens. We expect Juice to play as much as he can handle. We’ll see how it goes in the next 48 hours with Dhieu.”

A game in Alabama against the UAB Blazers on Jan. 1 seemingly sparked some tensions in the UTSA program. In the team’s Conference USA opener, the Blazers routed the Roadrunners, 87-59, and Deing was held to 0-for-11 shooting.

After returning home to San Antonio, emotions apparently were still running high.

Asked if Deing’s departure was a disciplinary measure, Henson said, “He was just frustrated. We were having a team meeting. We were discussing some things. And he stepped out … The next day, I think there was a lot on his mind at that point, a lot of pressure.

“He was just coming off the rough game against UAB. As a team, we were frustrated. We struggled as a team in that ball game. I just think there was a lot on his mind. He made a rash decision.

“We kind of had to let it settle down a little bit.”

First, Deing sat out a Jan. 3 non-conference home game against Dallas Christian. Next, UTSA announced on Jan. 6 before a C-USA home game against Southern Miss that he was no longer part of the program.

Even after the announcement, Henson said he continued to talk to the former North Carolina prep standout. Pretty soon, the talk turned to the possibility that he could re-join the team.

“He basically said he didn’t want to leave his team that way,” Henson said. “We just had to work through all the details on it and make sure we were comfortable with it. (We) continued to think about what impact it would have.

“Just felt like it was the right thing to do, at least give him a chance to come back to practice.”

A possibility existed that Deing could have come back to practice last week, but the plans were scuttled when he went into contract tracing protocols, Henson said.

Instead, the 6-foot-5, shot-maker made his first appearance at practice since late December on Tuesday afternoon.

“A couple of weeks ago, I made a mistake,” Deing said in a statement released by the athletic department. “I was frustrated on the court and lost my focus. I made a quick emotional decision, and I regret it.

“My coaches were very supportive of me, and I am grateful for that. I apologize to my team and our fans. I hope to come back and help our team in any way I can.”

Deing started in UTSA’s first 13 games. He averaged 15.3 points and 5.7 rebounds, while shooting 35.4 percent from the field.

Hot and cold with his jump shot, Deing was at his best when he was most selective, scoring 20 or more points four times.

Ivy-Curry, meanwhile, sat out two games in December and then missed the last four, both times because of Covid issues. The sophomore from Houston is averaging 15.1 points in 14 games.

If both of them can return to form, it could make quite a difference for the Roadrunners, who rank last in the conference, averaging 66.7 points as a team.

UTSA played short-handed with several players missing in recent days against the UTEP Miners, losing twice in low-scoring affairs decided by five points apiece.

On Sunday afternoon at home, the Roadrunners were boosted by the return of Christian Tucker and Josh Farmer, but the Miners pulled it out, 59-54.

Henson gave his players the day off on Monday, and on Tuesday, they gathered again. For the first time in weeks, Deing and Ivy-Curry were back on the floor together, and the energy picked up.

“It’s so helpful,” Henson said. “You can practice a little longer that way. Certainly we were able to get guys more reps at the right positions.”

Notable

If Deing gets back into the playing rotation, and it’s likely he will, the Roadrunners remain short-handed with 11 conference games remaining on the schedule.

Reserve center Adrian Rodriguez, a senior, retired from basketball with knee problems during preseason camp. UTSA announced last week that junior forward Aleu Aleu was also out for the season. Henson said he had surgery on his right knee.

In addition, Cedrick Alley, Jr., has been ruled academically ineligible.

Coming up

Thursday — FIU at UTSA, 7 p.m.
Saturday — FAU at UTSA, 1 p.m.

Records

Florida International 12-7, 2-4
UTSA 7-13, 0-7

Homecoming

FIU forward Clevon Brown, a grad transfer from Vanderbilt, grew up in San Antonio. He played at Churchill High School. Brown played four seasons with Vanderbilt in the Southeastern Conference. Now at FIU, he’s averaging 7.9 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.3 blocked shots for the Panthers.

UTEP wins 59-54 to sweep two conference games from UTSA

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Darius McNeill. UTEP beat UTSA 59-54 on Sunday, Jan. 23, 2022 at the Convocation Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

The UTSA Roadrunners lost their sixth straight game Sunday afternoon despite a stirring performance from senior Darius McNeill, who scored 14 of his 20 points in a second-half rally. – Photo by Joe Alexander

For the first three minutes Sunday afternoon at the UTSA Convocation Center, both the home team Roadrunners and the visiting UTEP Miners charged up and down the court, struggling to find their footing.

Locked in a tie game with the Miners, the Roadrunners weren’t gaining much ground, but neither were they losing it.

Jacob Germany. UTEP beat UTSA 59-54 on Sunday, Jan. 23, 2022 at the Convocation Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

Jacob Germany had a tough day against the Miners with six points on 3 of 12 shooting. The Miners were determined not to let him get going after he produced 21 points and 10 boards Thursday in El Paso. – Photo by Joe Alexander

It was about that time when things started to unravel for the home team. UTSA misfired on 18 of its next 22 shot attempts over the next 14 minutes, allowing UTEP to break away and ultimately claim a 59-54 victory in a defensive struggle.

Do-it-all UTEP guard Jamal Bieniemy produced 18 points, 11 rebounds and six assists as hard-luck UTSA lost its sixth straight, including two in four days to the Miners.

UTSA shot just 32 percent in the first half and, despite a Darius McNeill-led run late in the game, never could dig itself out of the hole completely. Roadrunners coach Steve Henson acknowledged that 34.5 percent shooting isn’t good enough.

“It’s been the story in too many” games this season, he said. “I mean, our guys really did some good things defensively these last two ball games. Made a lot of adjustments. We changed our defenses, mixed our defenses up.”

In limiting the Miners to 40 percent shooting Sunday afternoon, the Roadrunners also won the rebounding battle, including 14-7 on the offensive glass, and made as many free throws (12) as the visitors attempted.

“But our turnovers early just led to easy buckets for them,” Henson said. “It allowed them to get a little lead on us. There were a lot of other things there that gave us a chance to win. We’re just struggling to get the ball in the hole right now.”

Records

UTEP 11-8, 4-3
UTSA 7-13, 0-7

Coming up

Thursday — Florida International at UTSA, 7 p.m.
Saturday — Florida Atlantic at UTSA, 1 p.m.

Notable

A little more than a third of the way through the conference season, the Roadrunners remain a team in transition, struggling from game to game and week to week for a playing rotation that can win games.

At the start of the month, they lost leading scorer Dhieu Deing, who elected to pursue a professional career, followed by leading rebounder Cedrick Alley, Jr. (academically ineligible) and also promising reserve forward Aleu Aleu (right leg injury).

Josh Farmer. UTEP beat UTSA 59-54 on Sunday, Jan. 23, 2022 at the Convocation Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

Josh Farmer returned from Covid protocols to score four points in 10 minutes against the Miners.- Photo by Joe Alexander

With all three out for the season, the Roadrunners also have encountered Covid-19 issues dating back to the last two weeks of December. Jordan Ivy-Curry, Josh Farmer and Christian Tucker were the latest victims. They all sat out UTSA’s 69-64 loss at UTEP on Thursday in El Paso.

While Farmer and Tucker returned to play on Sunday, Ivy-Curry, perhaps the team’s best perimeter player, remained out for the fourth straight game.

When the team returns to practice Tuesday, Ivy-Curry is expected to be on the floor in preparation for home games later in the week against Florida International and Florida Atlantic.

Quotable

“We’ve been fighting different things all year — injuries, Covid,” Henson said. “This week was tough because of the numbers. We didn’t have enough to practice early in the week. (But) guys stepped up and did a great job at El Paso, with eight guys total, six scholarship guys.

“We added two more today (Tucker and Farmer) but those guys practiced yesterday for the first time in a week.

“Everybody (in the country) is dealing with different things. We’ve got a couple of season-ending injuries. We’re short-handed. But we put ourselves in position to win both games, Thursday and today. We just got to find a way to do it.”

McNeil’s resurgence

Without Ivy-Curry on the floor in El Paso or in San Antonio, the Miners saw quite a bit of McNeill, a transfer who has played at both Cal and at SMU.

McNeill hit 7 of 12 shots from the field and scored 19 in the first game. He followed that effort in the rematch by scoring 20 points on 7 of 15 shooting. McNeill is shooting 44 percent and averaging seven points for the season.

“Good player,” first-year UTEP coach Joe Golding said. “(He’s) obviously talented and has played at some high levels. You can tell he wants to win. You can tell he’s invested, and it means something to him.”

Turning the corner?

Like the Roadrunners, the Miners have experienced their share of adversity this season. Coming into the series against UTSA, they had lost 26 man-games to injury or illness, including Christian Agnew (six), Keonte Kennedy (five) and Souley Boum (four).

Kennedy didn’t play either game against UTSA, while Agnew played sparingly in both. Boum started and played well in both outings, allowing the Miners to sweep the regular-season series against the Roadrunners for the first time since 2014-15. UTEP is now on a three-game winning streak.

Ze’Rik Onyema from San Antonio and Jay High School had four points and two rebounds off the bench for UTEP on Sunday, Jan. 23, 2022, at UTSA. The Miners beat UTSA 59-54 at the Convocation Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

UTEP freshman Ze’Rik Onyema from San Antonio and Jay High School had four points and two rebounds off the bench for UTEP on Sunday. – Photo by Joe Alexander

“We’re finding different ways to win, which is good,” Golding said. “We’re starting to get some consistency in practice. We’ve had this team together really for three or four weeks.
We got Christian back this week. So, yeah, we’re having better practices. We’re starting to understand our roles a little bit better. We’re finding ways to win games.’

“Credit to our guys,” Golding said. “We stuck through it and continued to fight. We’re big believers that tough times pass and tough people last. Adversity makes you stronger. We’ve been tested on that this year … Our guys have stuck together. They deserve this.”

A team effort

When Bieniemy wasn’t hurting the Roadrunners, guards Jorell Saterfield and Boum were. Saterfield finished with 15 points (on 5 of 8 from three-point distance). Boum produced 11 points, four assists and four rebounds. Former San Antonio Jay High School big man Ze’Rik Onyema played eight minutes for the Miners. The 6-foot-8 forward scored four points, including a two-handed stuff in the first half.

UTSA looking for payback as it hosts UTEP today

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The UTEP Miners play at the UTSA Convocation Center today at 3 p.m. with a goal of defeating the Roadrunners for the second time in four days.

If it happens, it would be the first regular-season sweep for UTEP over UTSA in men’s basketball since the 2014-15 season.

Naturally, the Roadrunners are equally intent on another outcome. They intend to win to pay the Miners back for what happened in El Paso on Thursday night.

In West Texas, the Miners rallied from an 11-point halftime deficit to down the Roadrunners, 69-64.

UTSA played hard as a team but was saddled with its fifth straight loss while competing without six players who were on the team through the end of December.

Three of those players, including Jordan Ivy-Curry, Josh Farmer and Christian Tucker, were held out in Covid protocols.

Their status for today’s game likely won’t be known for a few more hours.

Three other players — starters Dhieu Deing and Cedrick Alley, Jr., and talented reserve Aleu Aleu — are not expected to play again this season.

Aleu is out with a season-ending injury. Alley is academically ineligible and Deing has left the program to pursue professional basketball.

Regardless of who plays, the goal is the same for the Roadrunners — end a five-game losing streak and start something positive to kick off a three-game homestand.

UTSA has had success under coach Steve Henson against UTEP. In Henson’s six years with the Roadrunners, he is 8-4 against the Miners.

The Miners, 13-10 overall against the Roadrunners in a series dating back to 1981, are scheduled to make their first appearance in San Antonio under the direction of first-year coach Joe Golding.

Golding made a name for himself last year in the NCAA Tournament when his Abilene Christian University Wildcats upset the Shaka Smart-coached Texas Longhorns in the first round.

On Golding’s UTEP staff is Jeremy Cox, who served in the 1990s as a UTSA assistant under former Roadrunners head coaches Stu Starner and Tim Carter.

Ze’Rik Onyema is a UTEP freshman forward from San Antonio’s Jay High School.

Records

UTEP 10-8, 3-3
UTSA 7-12, 0-6

UTEP’s second-half shooting stops UTSA’s upset bid

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Down by 11 at halftime and struggling on offense, the UTEP Miners heated up with seven 3-pointers after intermission and finally subdued the UTSA Roadrunners, 69-64, on Thursday night at the Haskins Center in El Paso.

UTEP, paced in the second half by long-distance shooting from Jorell Saterfield, handed UTSA its fifth straight loss and kept the Roadrunners winless in Conference USA. The Miners have won two in a row and three of their last four.

Dogged by injuries and Covid-19 issues, the Roadrunners played only seven players — six of them on scholarship, plus walk-on forward Isaiah Addo-Ankrah. Division I basketball programs are allowed up to 13 scholarships.

Notable

The Roadrunners, sparked by Addo-Ankrah’s nine points off the bench in 17 minutes, stayed in the game through much of the second half until the Miners took over.

Quotable

“We’re not going to let our guys off the hook,” UTSA coach Steve Henson said on the team’s radio broadcast. “We had enough guys to play, and we had enough guys to win. We just didn’t make enough plays down the stretch. Need to be a little tougher.

“Yeah, there was some fatigue. Some guys had never played big minutes (in college). Especially the young guys who had never done it … Isaiah, for him to go in there in that setting and do what he did, was pretty impressive.”

Germany’s big night

Junior center Jacob Germany led the Roadrunners with 21 points and 10 rebounds. He hit 9 of 18 from the field, including some long jump hooks. Senior guard Darius McNeill added 19 points, 5 rebounds and an assist. Both McNeill and guard Erik Czumbel played all 40 minutes.

Phoenix Ford had 11 points off the bench for the Roadrunners, who shot 63 percent from the field in the first half but only 28 percent after intermission.

For the Miners, Souley Boum scored 22, Saterfield had 18 and Jamal Bieniemy 11 points. Saterfield hit six of the Miners’ 10 three-point shots. Bieniemy also totaled 8 rebounds and 4 assists.

First half

Playing without Jordan Ivy-Curry for the third straight game, the Roadrunners shot 63 percent from the field and rolled to an improbable 38-27 lead before intermission. UTSA hit its first six shots for a 12-3 lead to set the tone.

The Roadrunners also finished strong by hitting its last three before the half. Germany, a 6-foot-11 lefthander, led the way with 14 points on 7 of 8 shooting. McNeill started and scored 10.

On the defensive end, UTSA was just as effective, holding UTEP to 33 percent (10 of 30 afield), with Boum scoring 13 to keep his team in the game.

The Roadrunners started with a lineup that included McNeill and Erik Czumbel at the guards, Lamin Sabally and Lachlan Bofinger at forwards and Germany in the post.

Notable

The UTSA men’s basketball program announced that the following players would not be available for Thursday night’s road game against the UTEP Miners: Aleu Aleu is out with a season-ending injury. Also, Josh Farmer, Jordan Ivy-Curry and Christian Tucker are all in COVID protocols.

Within the past few weeks, the Roadrunners have also lost guard Dhieu Deing, who left the team to turn professional, and power forward Cedrick Alley, Jr., who is academically ineligible. Both are expected to be lost for the season. Deing was the team’s leading scorer and Alley was the leading rebounder.

Records

UTSA 7-12, 0-6
UTEP 10-8, 3-3

Coming up

Sunday — UTEP at UTSA, 3 p.m.
Jan. 27 — FIU at UTSA, 7 p.m.
Jan. 29 — FAU at UTSA, 1 p.m.
Feb. 3 — UTSA at Rice, 7 p.m.
Feb. 5 — UTSA at North Texas, 5 p.m.
Feb. 7 — UTSA at Middle Tennessee, TBD

Young, 49ers fend off a Roadrunners rally to win, 62-53

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Jahmir Young scored 15 and Syracuse transfer Robert Braswell added 14 Saturday as the Charlotte 49ers turned back the energetic but short-handed UTSA Roadrunners, 62-53.

Young, the leading scorer in Conference USA, hit only 4 of 13 shots from the field.

But with a well-rounded game, he helped to hand the Roadrunners their fourth straight loss with six rebounds, four assists and two steals.

In a road game for UTSA played at Charlotte’s Halton Arena, only a few fans turned out due to impending bad weather and the Covid-19 threat.

The Roadrunners, playing without three starters, seemed to take advantage of the lack of energy in the building by erasing most of a 19-point deficit.

Down 32-13 early, they came back to pull within 42-37 with 10 minutes left.

In the end, without Jordan Ivy-Curry, Cedrick Alley Jr. and Dhieu Deing, they didn’t have enough firepower to sustain the momentum.

Deing (pro ball aspirations) and Alley (academics) are no longer with the team. They won’t be back this season. Ivy-Curry (Covid protocols) could return next week.

UTSA was concerned coming in that Charlotte’s offensive style, with cuts and back-cuts, would pose a problem.

While the 49ers didn’t hit a high percentage of shots from the field (34.7 percent), they did force their way to the free-throw line, where they hit 20 of 24, including 14 of 18 in the second half.

Another problem for the Roadrunners centered around decisions they made with the ball when they had it close to the basket.

A 13-1 lead for UTSA in second-chance points likely could have been an even wider margin, given a massive 19-5 edge in offensive rebounding for the Roadrunners.

Looking back, the Roadrunners probably wished they had either taken the ball stronger to the basket on the put-back attempts, or they should have dribbled out and re-started the possession.

Records

UTSA 7-11, 0-5
Charlotte 9-5, 2-0

Coming up

The Roadrunners were scheduled to return to San Antonio Saturday night. In coming days, they’ll begin preparations for a road game at UTEP on Thursday of next week.

Jan. 20 — UTSA at UTEP, 8 p.m.
Jan. 23 — UTEP at UTSA, 3 p.m.
Jan. 27 — FIU at UTSA, 7 p.m.
Jan. 29 — FAU at UTSA, 1 p.m.

Notable

UTSA forward Aleu Aleu apparently suffered an injury in the first half and didn’t return.

The Roadrunners shot 29.4 percent from the field (20 of 68). From three-point distance, they hit only 12.5 percent (2 of 16). Christian Tucker emerged as UTSA’s leading scorer with 10 points. Without the team’s other primary scoring threats on the floor, junior center Jacob Germany faced traps and double teams most of the afternoon, and as a result he hit only 2 of 9 shots.

Freshman Lamin Sabally and sophomore Lachlan Bofinger supplied good energy when they were on the floor. Sabally scored six points and pulled down 12 rebounds. Bofinger had six points and nine rebounds.

Old Dominion blows out UTSA, 83-51, in Norfolk

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The Old Dominion Monarchs hammered the short-handed UTSA Roadrunners with a 19-2 run in the second half Thursday night en route to an easy 83-51 victory in Conference USA men’s basketball.

In the game played at Norfolk, Va., the Roadrunners were playing without starters Cedrick Alley, Jr., and Jordan Ivy-Curry and still were within 13 points with 16 minutes left.

The Monarchs answered by turning up the intensity behind Jaylin Hunter and C.J. Keyser to push the lead to 30, at 61-31, with 10:38 remaining.

From there, UTSA was doomed to an 0-4 start in conference, with one loss by 32, one by 28 and another by 16. Old Dominion shot 62 percent from the field on the way to a 2-0 C-USA record.

The Roadrunners shot 39 percent from the field. They hit only 1 of 13 from three-point range. Erik Czumbel scored a season-high 16 for UTSA and Jacob Germany 12.

For the Monarchs, Austin Trice had 19, while Hunter and Keyser added 16 apiece. Combined, the threesome hit 22 of 32 shots from the floor.

“Never got any rhythm going offensively, and defensively, it was pretty disappointing,” UTSA coach Steve Henson told the team’s radio broadcast.

Records

UTSA 7-10, 0-4
Old Dominion 7-8, 2-0

Schedule

Saturday — UTSA at Charlotte, noon

Pre-game

When the Roadrunners stepped on the court against the Monarchs, they were without two starters, power forward Cedrick Alley Jr. and guard Jordan Ivy-Curry.

A UTSA spokesman said in a text that Alley is out for the year because of academic eligibility. Ivy-Curry is in Covid protocols, he added.

Alley played 15 games and started 14 for the Roadrunners. He averaged 9.3 points and a team-leading 6.8 rebounds. With Alley out, it means that the Roadrunners have lost two starters for the season in the last two weeks.

Last week, UTSA announced that Dhieu Deing was no longer on the team and planned to pursue a professional career. Deing was UTSA’s leading scorer with 15.3 points per game.

Ivy-Curry apparently did not travel, so he will be out a minimum of two games, against Old Dominion and against Charlotte on Saturday. It’s the second time that Ivy-Curry, the team’s second-leading scorer, averaging 15.1, has been in Covid protocols this season.

He also sat out two games in December.

The game at Old Dominion marked the first of three straight for the Roadrunners in conference away from home.

First half

Old Dominion built a 33-21 lead in the first half. Perhaps predictably, the Monarchs jumped on the Roadrunners early, forging leads of 7-0 and 16-2. Outside of scoring bursts from Erik Czumbel and Jacob Germany, UTSA trailed by double digits for most of the rest of the half. Forward Austin Trice hit 7 of 7 shots from the field for 15 points to lead the Monarchs. As a team, ODU hit 15 of 25 for 60 percent. UTSA was 7 of 25 for 28 percent. Czumbel hit 5 of 7 for 11 points.

Louisiana Tech nails 14 threes, scores a lopsided victory at UTSA

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Lachlan Bofinger. The UTSA men's basketball team lost to Louisiana Tech 79-63 on Saturday, Jan. 8, 2022, at the Convocation Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA’s Lachlan Bofinger battles Louisiana Tech’s Kenneth Lofton Jr. for a rebound Saturday afternoon at the Convocation Center. Lofton and the Bulldogs won 79-63 to complete a two-game, Conference USA sweep in Texas this week. – Photo by Joe Alexander

In the beginning, 6-foot-7, 275-pound sophomore Kenneth Lofton Jr. picked up a nifty steal on the perimeter and then made like a mack truck in over-drive, dribbling the length of the floor for a layup.

But in the end, it wasn’t really the Lofton show as much as it was an Amorie Archibald highlight reel.

UTSA limited Lofton to 5 of 14 shooting from the field, only to see Archibald and the Louisiana Tech perimeter players get on a red-hot shooting roll in a 79-63 victory for the Bulldogs over the slumping Roadrunners at the Convocation Center.

Jordan Ivy-Curry. The UTSA men's basketball team lost to Louisiana Tech 79-63 on Saturday, Jan. 8, 2022, at the Convocation Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA’s Jordan Ivy-Curry scored 22 points, including 13 in the second half. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Archibald, a senior guard, scored a game-high 31 points. He hit 12 of 14 shots from the field and 6 of 6 from three-point distance, helping his team sweep a two-game Conference USA road trip through Texas.

After downing the UTEP Miners in El Paso Thursday night, the Bulldogs came to San Antonio and toyed with the Roadrunners, knocking down 14 of 28 threes.

The performance sent UTSA reeling to its second-straight, C-USA loss of the week, both at home, and its fifth loss in its last six games overall.

Records

Louisiana Tech 13-3, 4-0
UTSA 7-9, 0-3

A coach’s lament

In a post-game visit with reporters, UTSA coach Steve Henson didn’t sugar-coat his feelings, implying that his locker room speech to players may have been a little bit blunt.

Saturday, Jan. 8, 2022, at the Convocation Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

Kenneth Lofton Jr. finished with 12 points and 16 rebounds, including six on the offensive end. Lofton grabbed 34 rebounds combined in victories over UTEP and UTSA this week.. – Photo by Joe Alexander

But he also tried to stay positive with three straight road games looming.

“They know I’m not going to go in there and try to make ’em feel better,” Henson said. “You know, we lost a game and didn’t make enough plays to give ourselves a legitimate chance to win. I also told them there were some stretches, some things we can build on.

“We’ve got a great deal of respect for (LA Tech). They’re one of the two or three best teams in the league. They’ve got depth. They’ve got so many good players.”

UTSA dropped to 0-3 in conference for the second straight season. Last year, the Roadrunners pulled it together and finished 9-7 in the C-USA. Can they do something like that again? Let’s just say, there is a lot of work to be done.

Assessing the Bulldogs

How good are the Bulldogs?

They entered play ranked No. 70 in the NET rankings, the tool that the NCAA uses to sort out the relative strength of its 358 Division I teams. Going up against the Roadrunners, at No. 336, they were expected to win — and they did.

At the same time, it’s never easy to sweep a road trip in the C-USA, and they did it in workman-like fashion, winning at UTEP by 12 points and at UTSA by 16. In El Paso, they held the Miners to 33 percent shooting. In San Antonio, they shot 48.4 percent from the field, including 57.1 percent in the second half.

Cedrick Alley Jr. The UTSA men's basketball team lost to Louisiana Tech 79-63 on Saturday, Jan. 8, 2022, at the Convocation Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA’s Cedrick Alley Jr. squeezes off a shot Saturday afternoon against Louisiana Tech. – Photo by Joe Alexander

They led by as many as 23 mid-way through the second half after Archibald came out firing after intermission. Archibald was four-for-four from long distance in the half, and he celebrated after some of them by blowing kisses to the sky.

“My coaches and my teammates just tell me to keep shooting when I’m open,” he said. “Last game, I didn’t really play to the best of my abilities. I just wanted to come out and give my team my best effort.”

Archibald said he felt like the Bulldogs “played great” the day after a long day on the road.

“Coming from El Paso, that’s a lot of traveling,” Archibald said. “But I feel like we battled through the adversity. That’s what coach talks about a lot. You know, those (road) sweeps don’t really come a lot in Conference USA. So, we took that into consideration, that we could do it, and I feel like we executed.”

Individual highlights

Louisiana Tech — Archibald, 31 points. Cobe Williams, 15 points, including 5 of 8 on three pointers. Lofton, 12 points and 16 rebounds in 27 minutes.

UTSA — Jordan Ivy-Curry, 22 points on 9 of 17 shooting. Jacob Germany, 17 points on 7 of 14 shooting. Also, 13 rebounds. Off the bench, Lamin Sabally, 10 points on 3 of 5 shooting, including 2 of 3 on three pointers. Darius McNeil, 7 points, 4 rebounds and 2 steals in 21 minutes off the bench.

Notable

The Roadrunners fell to 0-2 since they announced the departure of guard Dhieu Deing from the program. Deing had been averaging 15.3 points and 5 rebounds a game … Both Cedrick Alley, Jr., and Aleu Aleu were held to a combined three points. Pressured when he touched the ball on the perimter, Aleu went scoreless. He got off only one shot — a three-point attempt — and missed it. Alley was 1 for 7 from the field …

Darius McNeill. The UTSA men's basketball team lost to Louisiana Tech 79-63 on Saturday, Jan. 8, 2022, at the Convocation Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

Senior guard Darius McNeill finished with seven points, four rebounds and two assists off the bench. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Defensively, UTSA did a good job with Lofton, a 2021 Conference USA all-freshman team member. The sophomore from Port Arthur came in averaging 17.1 points. Outside of a few plays, he never found a rhythm while being shadowed by the taller Germany and banged around by Phoenix Ford and others … In bench play, UTSA got a little more production than it had been getting, with freshman Lamin Sabally and senior Darius McNeil leading the way. The Roadrunners also played well offensively in the second half, shooting 51.7 percent and scoring 37 after intermission.

It was a homecoming of sorts for Louisiana Tech shooting guard Keaston Willis. Willis played last year at San Antonio-based Incarnate Word and led the Cardinals into the Southland Conference tournament. Willis finished with 3 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists. He was 1 for 8 from the field. Afterward, he met with some friends wearing the UIW red and black.

Coming up

Jan. 13 — UTSA at Old Dominion.
Jan. 15 — UTSA at Charlotte.
Jan. 20 — UTSA at UTEP.
Jan. 23 — UTEP at UTSA.

Frustrated Roadrunners know they can play at a higher level

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Steve Henson. men's basketball lost to Southern Miss 74-73 on Thursday, Jan. 6, 2022, at the Convocation Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

Coach Steve Henson’s Roadrunners face a daunting stretch of games starting with Louisiana Tech at home on Saturday. — Photo by Joe Alexander

Plenty of questions swirled around the UTSA Roadrunners Friday morning as they prepared for a film session at noon, followed by a short practice and then an afternoon game Saturday against the powerful Louisiana Tech Bulldogs.

Guard Dhieu Deing, their leading scorer, has left the program to pursue professional basketball opportunities.

In addition, they’ve lost four of their last five games, including four straight against NCAA Division I competition.

Perhaps most concerning, the Roadrunners have now dropped their first two on the Conference USA schedule leading into Saturday’s 3 p.m. tipoff against Kenneth Lofton, Jr., and the Bulldogs.

It doesn’t get any easier after that as UTSA braces for three C-USA games in a row on the road.

Addressing the team’s situation after a 74-73 loss at home Thursday night to Southern Miss, UTSA coach Steve Henson acknowledged the challenge but maintained a positive outlook, given 16 games remaining on the C-USA schedule, including one Covid-related makeup.

“A lot of games left,” Henson said. “We got to play better, bottom line. This was an important game, because it was a home game. We talked about the early stretch (in conference) with a bunch of road games and home games against good opponents.

“So, it’s going to be important for our guys to stay together. They’re a little frustrated. We’re not playing the way we think we can. It doesn’t get any easier on Saturday. We know that. Then we go on the road for two.

“We got to keep our heads up and make progress.”

Coming up

Saturday, 3 p.m. — Louisiana Tech at UTSA.

Records

Louisiana Tech 12-3, 3-0
UTSA 7-8, 0-2

Notable

The Bulldogs ran their record in conference to 3-0 late Thursday night with a 64-52 road victory at UTEP. LA Tech smothered UTEP defensively, holding the Miners to 33 percent shooting. The Bulldogs also were aggressive in controlling the boards, 42-31.

Much of that was because of Lofton, who had 11 points and 18 rebounds. Outside of Lofton, one of the premier post players in the nation, sophomore guard Cobe Williams has evolved into a dangerous offensive threat.

Williams has scored 57 points in conference, including 22 against Marshall and 18 against Western Kentucky in home victories last week. The 6-footer from Dallas had 11 of his 17 on the Miners in the first half, when the Bulldogs surged to a 41-25 lead.

Lofton, a 6-foot-7, 275-pound sophomore, is averaging 17.5 points and 9.8 rebounds.