UTSA freshman Kaidon Rayfield started and produced a double-double with 13 points and 13 rebounds in his first college game. – Photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The UTSA Roadrunners called on three freshman to start on opening night, and it a turned out to be a strategy that paid dividends in a record-setting 97-30 victory Wednesday over the College of Biblical Studies Ambassadors.

Kaidon Rayfield, Dorian Hayes and Matheo Coffi all enjoyed their moments in UTSA’s 45th season opener.

Rayfield, a 6-foot-8 forward from Oklahoma City, came up big with 13 points and 13 rebounds in 23 minutes. Both Coffi, who started at center, and Hayes, a guard, scored 10 points apiece.

Austin Nunez and the Roadrunners will host the SIU Edwardsville Cougars on Friday afternoon. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Forward Macaleab Rich led with 15 points for the Roadrunners, who finished with 51 percent shooting from the field.

The Ambassadors, a third-year program in the National Christian Collegiate Athletic Association, were held to a UTSA opponent record low in points. They managed only 15 percent shooting on the night.

“A get-your-feet wet type of game,” said UTSA point guard Austin Nunez.

Next, UTSA will play its first NCAA Division I opponent of the season against the SIU Edwardsville Cougars of the Ohio Valley Conference.

Former Texas A&M guard Brian Barone coaches the Illinois-based Cougars, who won 22 games last season and advanced to the NCAA tournament. The game will tip off at 12:30 p.m. Friday at the Convocation Center.

There’s no word yet on whether the Roadrunners will have the services of highly-touted guard Vasean Allette for Game 2, as he did not play and apparently was not in the arena for the opener.

Without Allette, the Roadrunners started against the Ambassadors with a backcourt consisting of San Antonio’s Nunez and Hayes, with Jamir Simpson on the wing.

The small lineup featured two young players in Coffi and Rayfield, both of them 6-8, who along with Hayes were playing in their first games for an NCAA Division I program.

After the first four minutes, the Roadrunners started to break the game open. With UTSA ahead by four, UTSA surged on an 18-0 run that pushed the the lead to 22. By halftime, the Roadrunners had played 12 players to build a 56-18 advantage.

Eventually, all 14 men who dressed out in the school’s new Nike uniforms made their way into the box score as the Roadrunners mounted leads as large as 70 in the final minute.

Part of UTSA’s dominance could be attributed to playing the Ambassadors, who didn’t have a player taller than Coach Michael Young, who stands 6-6.

In addition to their size disadvantage, the visitors from Houston were playing their third game against NCAA Division I competition in three days.

Speaking with reporters afterward, UTSA coach Austin Claunch thanked Young and his players for making the trip after a game Monday at Prairie View A&M and Tuesday at Rice.

“Three games in three nights,” the coach said. “Just give them credit for being here and being able to compete.”

Even though it counted as a season opener for the Roadrunners, it also served as an opportunity to make amends after they were humbled 10 days ago in an exhibition at home against the Incarnate Word Cardinals.

“For us, we needed to come out and play well and dominate a game,” Claunch said. “We had a scrimmage (against Stephen F. Austin) and an exhibition (UIW) where we hadn’t done that at a high enough level.

College of Biblical Studies coach Michael Young played shooting guard for the famed ‘Phi Slama Jama’ teams at the University of Houston in the 1980s. Young says people still remember those teams. ‘I hear about Phi Slama Jama every day,’ he said. – Photo by Joe Alexander

“What I loved tonight, we did do some things that translate in regards to not turning the ball over. We rebounded at a high level, particularly in the second half. I just love our balance.”

Added Claunch: “I think we got a lot of guys that can do a lot of different things. We got a lot of guys that can score (and) pass.”

Claunch said he will take the school record for fewest points by an opponent.

“It’s an accomplishment,” he said. “That’s a pretty cool one, regardless of when it was or who it was against, considering they had played so many games in so many nights.”

Rayfield, who played last year at PHHoenix Prep in Arizona, came to the interview session with a ‘Texas Tough’ cowboy hat. The team awarded it to him for his effort, which included five offensive rebounds.

When asked how he was feeling, he looked up, failing to hide a big grin. “Got our first dub,” he said. “Put a smile on my face.”

He smiled again later when another reporter asked about his rebounding, acknowledging that he takes pride in his work on the boards.

Also, he said it felt good earn a start in his first college game.

“I thank this guy for believing in me,” Rayfield said, looking at Claunch. “And, (with) more wins to come.”

It was also a special night for Nunez, who returns home this season after three seasons at Arizona State, Ole Miss and Arizona State again.

Now he’s back in the city where he grew up and became a dominant player for the Wagner High School Thunderbirds.

“Been a long time since I’ve had an opportunity like this,” Nunez said, “just getting out there and putting the uniform on, playing in front of my family (and) people that care about me.

Forward Macaleab Rich led the Roadrunners with 15 points on seven for 11 shooting from the field. – Photo by Joe Alexander

“Just a great feeling,” he said, “no matter what the outcome was from my individual stats (seven points, four assists in 18 minutes). I was just worried about us getting a win.”

Even though he shot only two for eight from the field, Nunez had a presence. He lent a certain calmness to the offense, moving the ball to the right spots to maintain spacing, just doing the little things to help the flow.

His savvy could have come in handy on Oct. 25 against the UIW Cardinals, who beat the Roadrunners 87-76 in a scrimmage on their home court.

Nunez didn’t play that night, held out in concussion protocol after getting hit in the right eye in practice.

Even though the loss didn’t count in the record, it still haunts the Roadrunners.

“I didn’t do a good job before UIW, having us prepared on either side of the ball,” Claunch said. “I just thought this past week and a half that we’ve had clarity on what we wanted to do offensively (and) how we want to guard.

“I just thought from top to bottom, that was better (tonight).”

Records

College of Biblical Studies 1-3
UTSA 1-0

Coming up

SIU Edwardsville at UTSA, Friday, 12:30 p.m.

Notable

Vasean Allette, a 6-2 guard from Ontario, Canada, has 51 games of Division I experience, including stops the past two seasons at Old Dominion and TCU.

He played as a starter last year for the Horned Frogs in the Big 12, averaging 11.4 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.3 steals.

Three weeks ago, the American Conference preseason rankings were published and projected him as a second-team, all-conference player. Without Allette, the Roadrunners had contributions from several players.

Rich, a transfer from Kansas State, had 15 points and four rebounds. He hit seven for 11 from the field. Simpson, who played last year at Southern Utah, had 13 points and seven rebounds. Coffi, from France, scored 10 points on five of five shooting.

Simpson knocked down three of UTSA’s nine 3-pointers, while Hayes and Brent Moss had two each.

Accepting the challenge

The Houston-based Ambassadors are coached by Michael Young, a member of the Houston Cougars’ famed ‘Phi Slama Jama’ teams from the 1980s.

For his College of Biblical Studies team, the UTSA game was its third exhibition against Division I competition in three days in three different towns. On Monday, the Ambassadors fell 95-48 at Prairie View A&M. On Tuesday night, they lost 109-38 to the Rice Owls in Houston.

Before the UTSA game, Young said he wanted to use the three games to see how his club stacked up against higher-level athletes.

“They’re tired, but I want to see how tough we are, how our conditioning is, (how) our mental toughness and focus (is),” Young said. “These are things we need to do to get better. The scoreboard is the scoreboard. But how did we do today as a team? That’s the most important thing.”

Young said he’s enjoying his job in mentoring the Ambassadors.

“I’m really enjoying it,” he said. “I’ve got a great group of young men, very attentive. (They) want to win. They want to do better. It’s like a second-chance ball club for players.

“These guys have played someone else or haven’t had a chance to play, so they’re really working hard. A very good group.”

Freshman guard Trayvon Martinez led the Ambassadors against the Roadrunners, producing seven points, six rebounds and five steals in 27 minutes. The 6-foot-3 Martinez is from Manvel.

Guard-forward Jamir Simpson, a transfer from Southern Utah, started in his UTSA debut and contributed 13 points and seven rebounds. – Photo by Joe Alexander