Tag Archives: women’s college basketball

Coleman dominates as UTSA claims its first AAC victory

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Elyssa Coleman had 32 points, 19 rebounds and 3 blocks as UTSA earned its first American Conference women's basketball win, beating Wichita State 74-60 at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Center Elyssa Coleman led the UTSA Roadrunners to their first victory in the American Athletic Conference Saturday at the Convocation Center. – Photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

For the past few seasons, center Elyssa Coleman has made a name for herself as one of the steadiest players on the UTSA Roadrunners, a reliable source of defense, blocked shots and rebounds.

On Saturday afternoon, the 6-foot-3 junior from Atascocita stepped it up, unleashing a dominant performance on both ends of the floor with career highs of 32 points and 19 rebounds. She also had three blocks.

Karen Aston. UTSA beat Wichita State 76-60 in American Conference women's basketball on Saturday, Jan. 6, 2023, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Coach Karen Aston said she thinks her team played with more ‘purpose’ in downing the Wichita State Shockers. – Photo by Joe Alexander

As Coleman asserted herself, the Roadrunners made history by winning their first American Athletic Conference game, running away in the fourth quarter and downing the Wichita State Shockers 74-60 at the Convocation Center.

“It’s always a good thing to win, but getting our first American win is a big deal for us,” UTSA coach Karen Aston said. “A bigger deal is that we played with a lot more purpose, I guess is the best way I can describe it.

“I thought we were very good defensively in the first and the fourth. Which has kind of been a little bit of our personality, defensively, is to turn it back on and clamp down in the fourth, and I thought we did a good job with that.

“In particular, I thought our post players did a great job on theirs. Really it’s a team defensive concept when you’re trying to stop that high-low game that they play … Just excited to get a win.”

In UTSA’s first home game in 23 days, Coleman scored her career high in points on 14 of 20 shooting from the field. UTSA’s San Antonio-area backcourt of Sidney Love and Kyra White also played well for the Roadrunners.

While Love was notching 16 points and six assists, White showed up all over the stat sheet with 12 points, nine rebounds and eight assists for the Roadrunners (7-7, 1-2).

Sidney Love. UTSA beat Wichita State 76-60 in American Conference women's basketball on Saturday, Jan. 6, 2023, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Point guard Sidney Love had 16 points and six assists against only one turnover. – Photo by Joe Alexander

The Shockers (5-10, 1-2) couldn’t hit a shot early in the game and fell behind by 10. But they rallied to win the second and third quarters and made it competitive. Aniya Bell led Wichita State with 16 points. Daniela Abies had 12 points and 12 rebounds.

In UTSA’s first 13 games this season, Coleman averaged 10.4 points, 7.1 rebounds and 1.7 blocks. Her 14th outing was 14K golden, particularly the fourth quarter, when she scored 15 points on seven of 11 shooting.

“I think coach has been on us to just give it our all and really sell out,” Coleman said. “Me and my position coach (Cameron Miles) were talking yesterday about how I wasn’t playing my best and wasn’t putting out my full effort and (would) still get decent games, stat-wise.

“(We talked about) what would happen if I actually put my all into it. So, that’s what I tried to do.”

All sports at UTSA became members of the AAC last summer after 10 seasons in Conference USA. UTSA women’s basketball entered its season last fall without much fanfare, picked eighth in the 14-team league.

Though they played well in nonconference, going 6-5, they failed to gain traction when they entered AAC competition last weekend. In a pair of road games, they were humbled, once at Temple in Philadelphia and also at East Carolina, in Greenville, N.C.

Kyra White. UTSA beat Wichita State 76-60 in American Conference women's basketball on Saturday, Jan. 6, 2023, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Kyra White produced 12 points and season-highs of nine rebounds and eight assists. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Game 2 on the conference slate was particularly grim, as they lost to the Pirates by 28. As a result, they first tried for a little while to process the disappointment, and then they attacked workouts coming into the Wichita State game with intensity and resolve.

“I feel like we were definitely due for a win, especially on our home court,” Love said. “In a new conference, you just want to build on something. None of us wanted to go 0-3. We decided to play like we wanted to get a win, and we did that tonight.”

Records

Wichita State 5-10, 1-2
UTSA 7-7, 1-2

Coming up

UTSA at Florida Atlantic, Wednesday, 6 p.m.

Notable

UTSA’s schedule has been tilted toward road games — nine of 14 away — and yet the Roadrunners have come out of it at 7-7 in wins and losses. They are 3-2 at home and 4-5 on the road. Eight of their next 14 games will be at home.

Guard Aysia Proctor sat out her first game of the season at East Carolina with an injury. She bounced back to start and play 22 minutes against Wichita State. It wasn’t her best performance, but she contributed with six points, three rebounds and two assists.

Wichita State is led by first-year head coach Terry Nooner, who played guard for Roy Williams at Kansas from 1997-2001. It’s the first head-coaching job for Nooner, who worked for Karen Aston at Texas in 2019-20.

He has also served as an assistant at Kansas, Maryland, Alabama and Southern Illinois, as well as one season as a player development coach with the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers.

First half

Playing with defensive aggression early, the Roadrunners surged into an early lead of double digits and then held off the Shockers at the end of the half for a 33-30 advantage at intermission.

Love scored 10 points and Coleman produced nine and 11 rebounds for the Roadrunners. UTSA jumped out to a 10-0 lead in the first five minutes and held Wichita State to eight points in the first quarter.

After that, the Shockers found their groove. They surged behind Abies and Bell in the second quarter to make it a one possession game in the final seconds of the half.

Bell found the range from long distance, hitting three 3-pointers and scoring 11 to lead the team. Abies battled inside for nine points and seven rebounds. She was four-for-five from the field.

Elyssa Coleman had 32 points, 19 rebounds and 3 blocks as UTSA earned its first American Conference women's basketball win, beating Wichita State 74-60 at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Elyssa Coleman takes aim at the rim against the Wichita State Shockers. She finished with career highs of 32 points and 19 rebounds. Her scoring total topped her previous best of 23 against UTEP last Dec. 3. Her previous best rebound total was 13 on Dec. 17 at Oregon. – Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA women set to host Wichita State on Saturday afternoon

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Madison Cockrell. UTSA beat Charlotte 60-54 in a Conference USA women's basketball game Saturday, Jan. 14, 2023, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Sophomore guard Madison Cockrell says the UTSA Roadrunners took “to heart” their first two losses in the American Athletic Conference. She says that, as a result, players know that they need to change some things to get back on course. – File photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

After an 0-2 start in the American Athletic Conference, players on the UTSA women’s basketball squad felt the harsh sting of disappointment.

First, they dropped a 71-58 decision at Temple last Saturday afternoon in Philadelphia in the first AAC game in program history.

Next, they journeyed to Greenville, N.C., and were humbled again, falling 82-54 to the East Carolina Pirates.

Even though the Pirates won the AAC postseason title last season and were a preseason pick to finish second in the conference this year, the Roadrunners were downcast.

A proud group of athletes, they wanted and expected to be better, and they just weren’t.

“For me, I definitely thought about it throughout the night and the next day,” UTSA sophomore Madison Cockrell said. “I know for my teammates, it was the same thing. But we can’t dwell on the past. We can only learn from our mistakes and move forward and get ready for our next game.”

The Roadrunners will get that opportunity on Saturday afternoon when they play host to the Wichita State Shockers.

Tipoff between UTSA (6-7, 0-2) and Wichita State (5-9, 1-1) is set for 2 p.m. at the Convocation Center.

Cockrell said she feels good about the team’s preparation the past few days.

“I think our last few practices, we have been executing and working on practicing how we’re going to play in the game,” she said. “We took our first two conference losses to heart, and we are starting to change things.”

At that, she smiled, and nodded her head in the affirmative.

“(We’re) going hard every day in practices,” she said. “Playing hard. Paying attention to details. Studying the scout. Getting ready for Saturday.”

When the game in Greenville got away from the Roadrunners Tuesday afternoon, UTSA coaches elected to play some players who haven’t seen much time this season.

Cockrell, who notched a season high of 17 minutes and produced career highs of 13 points and three steals, caught the attention of the UTSA coaches.

So did freshman guard Emma Lucio, who notched a season high of 21 minutes. Lucio, from Edinburg, finished with three points, three rebounds and two assists.

“Opportunity is what you do with it,” UTSA coach Karen Aston said Friday morning, “and I thought those two kids did something with their opportunity the other night, and they’re going to get rewarded with more playing time tomorrow.”

Following Friday’s practice, a few other personnel questions loomed.

First, will Aysia Proctor be able to play against the Shockers? Well, maybe.

Asked Friday morning about Proctor’s status for Wichita State, Aston was non-committal, offering only that, “she’ll be fine.” By Friday afternoon, a positive sign on Proctor emerged at practice when the freshman from Clemens took part in five-on-five drills.

The second question is one that has been percolating for months now. It involves standout forward Jordyn Jenkins, who hasn’t played at all this season.

Jenkins went through light shooting drills both on her own and briefly with the team Friday afternoon. At the same time, Jenkins, who won Conference USA Player of the Year honors in 2022-23, did not take part in any of the team’s five-on-five contact work.

She is rehabilitating an injured knee.

Notable

The UTSA men are also looking for their first AAC victory. The Roadrunners will try to get it Saturday afternoon in Houston against the Rice Owls. The Roadrunners (6-8, 0-1) and the Owls (6-8, 0-1) are set to play at the University of St. Thomas, with tipoff set for 2 p.m. The game was moved off the Rice campus because of water damage at Tudor Fieldhouse. Injured UTSA guard Adante’ Holiman isn’t expected to play. Holiman turned his ankle in the second half of Tuesday night’s 78-76 loss to the UAB Blazers in San Antonio.

Correction

An earlier version of this story incorrectly reported the score of UTSA’s Tuesday night game in Greenville, N.C. The score has been changed in the story to reflect East Carolina’s 82-54 victory over UTSA in women’s college basketball.

On a mission: UTSA women carry a winning record into AAC play

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

UTSA sophomore point guard Sidney Love averages 12.2 points to lead UTSA in scoring. She also shoots 87 percent at the free-throw line to lead the American Athletic Conference. -File photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

History beckons for a surprisingly resilient UTSA women’s basketball team preparing to take its first steps on a hardwood court in the American Athletic Conference.

Transitioning to the AAC after 10 seasons in Conference USA, the well-traveled and road-tested Roadrunners (6-5) will carry a winning record into a two-game AAC road swing.

They’ll play Saturday in Philadelphia against the Temple Owls (6-6) and Tuesday in Greenville, N.C., against the East Carolina Pirates (7-3).

Kyra White. UTSA beat New Mexico State 58-55 in women's basketball on Friday, Nov. 10, 2023, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Kyra White ranks among UTSA team leaders in scoring (10.6), rebounding (5.5) and assists (4.1).- File photo by Joe Alexander

“I’m excited to start American play,” UTSA coach Karen Aston said Thursday afternoon. “It’s always exciting to get to a place where the stakes are higher … I’m excited to get it started.”

Like UTSA, both Temple and East Carolina are programs that have seen hard times recently and have taken steps to upgrade.

Aston understands the challenge that awaits.

“These road games, you can look at it two different ways,” she said. “I mean, we do start (conference) on the road against experienced teams that have kind of taken their lumps in the American, and now they’re on the other side of it.

“But on the flip side, the good thing about it is, we get these out of the way when we’re not in school. I think that’s a huge factor for us.”

As one of six new women’s basketball programs in the AAC, UTSA is no longer the cupcake on everyone’s NCAA Division I schedule.

In fact, the Roadrunners have six victories against D-I competition and have registered a winning overall record at the Christmas break for the first time in 10 years.

Coming off eight straight losing seasons, the Roadrunners are listed at No. 144 in the NET rankings, which puts them in the top half of programs in Division I.

For the fans, it’s been remarkable to see the dramatic changes under Aston, who is in her third year as coach.

“Like night and day,” UTSA senior Kyleigh McGuire said in a Dec. 13 interview. “When coach Karen came in here, she had a mission, and she recruited people and staff that fit into that plan and would buy in at 100 percent — and never let up.”

Led by guards Sidney Love and Kyra White and center Elyssa Coleman, the team has veteran talent and savvy at those three key positions.

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

Center Elyssa Coleman has emerged in her junior year as a force inside with 10.3 points per game, all while leading UTSA in rebounding (7.4) and blocks (1.7). – File photo by Joe Alexander

In addition, the Roadrunners also are getting major contributions from two freshmen in guard Aysia Proctor and forward Idara Udo.

Forward Jordyn Jenkins, the Player of the Year in Conference USA last season, hasn’t played yet due to a knee injury. But, her absence from the lineup hasn’t had too much of a negative effect on the team, all things considered.

In four games against Power 5 competition, UTSA came out of it winless at 0-4, but three of the losses were by single digits. Once, the lost by five at Texas Tech. On another day, they lost at home by two to Houston.

Also, road games haven’t bothered them too much. They’re 4-3 record on the road so far. Before Christmas, the Roadrunners took on a daunting challenge with two games in the north west corner of the United States and came out of it with a split.

Despite poor shooting, they were within five points against the Pac-12’s Oregon Ducks with four minutes remaining, couldn’t sustain the momentum and lost by 13. A few days later, playing at Seattle, they jumped out to an early lead, ballooned it to 23 in the second half and eventually downed the Seattle Redhawks, 75-64.

Granted the RedHawks are 1-9, but this time two or three years ago, the Roadrunners weren’t winning many games on the road against anyone.

“It’s always good to win your last game before you go home for the holidays,” Aston said of the victory at Seattle. “It always bodes well for the break and how you feel about taking a few days off. I think the break was much needed for us. We had a lot of travel in nonconference play.

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

UTSA freshman Aysia Proctor from Clemens High School has supplied scoring (9.4) and rebounding (5.5) off the bench. She also isn’t shy about playing on the road, as she scored 20 points at Oregon. – Photo by Joe Alexander

“I thought we had a chance at Oregon, so it was disappointing we didn’t take advantage of that opportunity. But on the other side of it, when I watched the film, I thought we did some really good things. We just didn’t make shots.”

Rebounding kept UTSA close against Oregon, as it has all season.

“A lot of that was because we didn’t make shots and we had a lot of offensive rebounds,” the coach said. “But, they’re big. They have size. We haven’t seen anything like that. It was a little bit shocking in the beginning, but we adjusted in the second half.

“You know, there’s been a couple of these games that, had we showed up a little better in the first half, we’d have had a chance to win.”

Perhaps most promising for the Roadrunners leading into AAC competition is the play of Proctor and Udo, the two precocious freshmen.

Proctor, a 5-8 guard from San Antonio-area Clemens High School, is averaging 9.4 points and 5.5 rebounds in 22.1 minutes. She has scored in double figures in three straight games, including 19 against Houston and 20 against Oregon.

Against the Ducks, she was the only UTSA player shooting it with authority against a quality opponent, and she also pulled down 11 rebounds in the game.

Udo, a physical 6-1 post player from Plano, is averaging 6.3 points and 6.4 rebounds in 18.7 minutes. Against Seattle, she came off the bench for 19 points and nine rebounds.

“It’s always good to have more people in your rotation,” Aston said. “Those two have established themselves, definitely, in the rotation at this point.”

Aston said she is not surprised at how much the two freshmen have accomplished.

“Honestly, I thought they would contribute to our team,” the coach said. “We recruited players that maybe added something to the table that we didn’t have previously.

“I mean, Aysia can really score the ball, and she’s learning in all the other areas of the game. But the flat-out truth is, she can score the basketball. And we need somebody who can score it, and she adds that, and I thought she would.”

In many ways, both Proctor and Udo have softened the blow for the team in trying to make up for the loss of Jenkins.

Proctor has stepped in to establish herself as an offensive threat, a 50.5 percent shooter from the field, while Udo has held her own as a defender-rebounder who can also score.

Idara Udo (No. 25) had a key blocked shot with 7 seconds left. UTSA beat New Mexico State 58-55 in women's basketball on Friday, Nov. 10, 2023, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Idara Udo had a key blocked shot with 7 seconds left as UTSA beat New Mexico State 58-55 on Nov. 10. – Filer photo by Joe Alexander

Aston lauded Udo’s work ethic.

“She’s taken advantage of the opportunity, and she has made the absolute most of it every single day,” the coach said. “What she does in the games is based on what she does every day in practice. I think that bodes well for her career.

“Anytime a player comes to play in practice every day, you can’t help but play ’em (in games).”

Notable

During UTSA’s game at Seattle on Dec. 19, an ESPN broadcaster described Jordyn Jenkins‘ playing status as “day to day.” Asked after practice on Thursday if anything was new on UTSA’s 20 points per-game scorer from last season, Aston declined comment. The coach has said previously that UTSA doesn’t want to rush anything in her rehabilitation. Jenkins, who has been described as a player with pro potential, injured her right knee in April.

UTSA leaders

Scoring

Sidney Love 12.2
Kyra White 10.6
Elyssa Coleman 10.3
Aysia Proctor 9.4

Field goal percentage

Aysia Proctor 50.5
Elyssa Coleman 44.0
Idara Udo 43.3
(35 or more attempts)

Three-point percentage

Siena Guttadauro 33.3
Kyra White 30.0
Sidney Love 24.0
(21 or more attempts)

Free-throw percentage

Sidney Love 87.0
Kyra White 64.7
Maya Linton 63.0
(17 or more attempts)

Rebounding

Elyssa Coleman 7.4
Idara Udo 6.4
Aysia Proctor 5.5
Kyra White 5.3

Assists

Kyra White 46
Sidney Love 33

Steals

Sidney Love 17
Maya Linton 15
Kyra White 10

Blocks

Elyssa Coleman 19
Kyra White 15
Idara Udo 12

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

Karen Aston’s UTSA Roadrunners will play the Temple Owls Saturday in Philadelphia in the program’s inaugural game in the American Athletic Conference. – File photo by Joe Alexander

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A scoring mentality: UTSA’s White adds jump shot accuracy to her overall game

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Kyra White. UTSA women's basketball beat Florida International 85-79 for Senior Day on Saturday, Feb. 25, 2023, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Former Judson standout Kyra White scored 44 points on 18 of 31 shooting from the field in two home games last week. — Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA guard Kyra White says she isn’t doing anything different, from a technical standpoint, when she shoots her jump shot.

She says her recent hot streak is just a matter of months of practice finally producing results.

That, and a heightened sense of confidence.

“We’re just working on getting to my spots and having the scoring mentality,” she said after practice Tuesday. “I believe that, in the beginning of the season, I was just looking to be a play maker. Making plays for my team. Now that I’m figuring out that my shot is going in, all this extra work is coming to the surface, and I’m just feeling a lot of confidence right now. My teammates trust me to shoot the ball, so I’m going to continue to go out and do that.”

All season, White has been one of the Roadrunners’ best players.

On the ball at point guard or on the wing, the former Judson High School standout has facilitated the offense, averaging 4.5 assists. She’s crashed the boards, averaging 4.3 rebounds. And she’s also supplied offense when needed, producing 7.6 points.

Lately, though, the offense has been eye opening.

In two games at home last week, White scored 44 points — 22 each in victories over the FAU Owls and the FIU Panthers — all while knocking down a combined 18 of 31 from the field.

The 5-foot-9 junior, a transfer from Southern Cal, sparked a UTSA comeback by taking five jumpers and making all of them in the third quarter of UTSA’s 85-79 victory over FIU on Saturday afternoon.

UTSA assistant Jamie Carey says there’s no secret to White sizzling at 58 percent in the two home games after shooting just 33 percent for the season.

“It’s gym time,” Carey said. “It’s a perfect example of what hard work does. She’s in the gym every day before practice, every day after practice. When you put in that time, your confidence does grow. I mean, I think (her shot) is coming off her hand cleaner. There’s a lot that she’s doing really well, but you don’t accomplish that if you haven’t been in the gym.”

White arrived at UTSA last fall with some fanfare as one of the key players on Judson’s 2019 state championship team. But in three seasons at Southern Cal to start her collegiate career, she averaged only 1.8 points and 1.6 assists in 18.1 minutes.

Last season, she shot 47.6 percent on 10 of 21 shooting. But her playing time had been reduced from 24.9 minutes in 2020-21, down to 12.2.

This year, back home in the San Antonio area, she has flourished.

“I’m just so blessed to be with an amazing program, with amazing girls and amazing staff,” she said. “We’re in March and I’m playing basketball. You gotta love it.”

Coming up

UTSA at Charlotte, Thursday, 5 p.m.
end of regular season
UTSA at Conference USA tournament, March 8-11, at Frisco

Surprising UTSA women hope to keep it going against FAU

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By Jerry Briggs
For The JB Replay

The UTSA women’s basketball team has a dual mission tonight — make amends for a poor performance earlier this season and keep alive its late-season push in the Conference USA standings.

Jordyn Jenkins. UTSA women's basketball beat No. 21 Middle Tennessee 58-53 on Saturday, Feb. 4, 2023, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Jordyn Jenkins has scored 528 points, 55 shy of the UTSA school single-season record held by Tammy Rogers, who produced 583 in 1990-91. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Surprising UTSA is 4-3 in its last seven games going into tonight’s home test against the struggling Florida Atlantic University Owls. Tipoff is at 7 p.m. at the Convocation Center.

Last month, the Roadrunners traveled to Florida and got swept in a two-game C-USA road series, losing at FAU 81-66 and at Florida International, 51-48. A week later, on Jan. 26, they returned home and dropped another close game to North Texas, 54-51.

After losing to the Mean Green, UTSA dropped to 4-15 and 2-8 in the conference.

Since then, the ball club has caught a tail-wind, winning four out of seven games, including victories over Louisiana Tech (on the road), Middle Tennessee and Rice (both at home) and North Texas (on the road).

As a result, the Roadrunners have improved to 8-18 on the season and 6-11 in the C-USA.

The latest victory may have been the most dramatic. Playing in Denton on Monday night, UTSA squandered a nine-point fourth quarter lead before riding Jordyn Jenkins to a 68-67 decision over North Texas in overtime.

In boosting veteran coach Karen Aston to the 300th victory of her career, Jenkins hit 12 of 20 shots from the field, including three of five from 3-point distance. The 40-point showing not only was her career-high, but with 11 rebounds, she also notched her ninth double-double of the year.

If history is any indication, FAU could be a problem tonight for UTSA despite Jenkins’ talents. The Owls dominated the Roadrunners last month, with guard Aniyah Hubbard lighting it up for 21 points. The 5-8 guard also had four rebounds, three assists and four steals.

Defensively, the Owls were effective, holding the Roadrunners to 31 percent shooting. They also out-rebounded the visitors, 27-21. The margin wasn’t that much, but it was one of the few times during the conference schedule that an opponent out-rebounded UTSA.

Lately, FAU has fallen on hard times, losing four straight, dropping the Owls to 12-13 and 5-11, a half game below the Roadrunners in the C-USA standings. Right now, UTSA is ninth in the standings and FAU 10th.

All 11 C-USA teams qualify for the C-USA tournament next month in Frisco, but, generally the higher a team can finish in the regular season, the easier it is to win games and advance.

It’s likely that UTSA will need to win four games in four days to win the C-USA title and make the 64-team NCAA field.

Records

FAU 12-13, 5-11
UTSA 8-18, 6-11

Coming up

FAU at UTSA, Thursday, 7 p.m.
FIU at UTSA, Saturday, noon

Notable

UTSA hasn’t won as many as nine games in a season and six games on its conference schedule since the 2017-18 season, when the Roadrunners finished 9-21 and 6-10…Jordyn Jenkins, a UTSA newcomer after transferring from Southern Cal, is 55 points shy of the school record held by Tammy Rogers.

UTSA milestones: Jenkins scores 40 as Aston wins her 300th game

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By Jerry Briggs
For The JB Replay

UTSA coach Karen Aston opened her postgame news conference five nights ago with a wry smile and a joke.

“My first thought is, we just need to play at home, and just skip going on the road,” Aston said. “(Playing at home) makes a huge difference for our team, for some reason.”

Her point was clear.

For the most part, the Roadrunners have been a much better team at home this season than they have been on the road.

But her message also carried another, more subtle, message. Ever the competitor, Aston has grown weary of losing on the road.

Her players heeded the message Monday night in Denton, downing the North Texas Mean Green 68-67 in overtime and handing the coach a milestone 300th career victory.

Responding to social media posts about a career 40-point, 11-rebound performance from junior forward Jordyn Jenkins, Aston applauded the effort with a post on her Twitter feed.

“Front row seat for this one,” she said simply.

Aston had to like another aspect of her team’s showing in Denton, as well.

The Roadrunners put on a rebounding clinic, winning the boards, 46-28, as the coach improved to 300-187 in her career.

Jenkins had her ninth double-figure rebound game of the season, while center Elyssa Coleman snared eight boards and guard Kyra White seven.

With the victory, the resurgent UTSA women completed a three-games-in-five-days stretch with a 2-1 record. They also improved to 4-3 over their last seven games, including a 2-2 record on the road.

In the fourth quarter, the Roadrunners led the Mean Green by nine points with eight minutes remaining, only to see the home team rally to tie and force overtime. Guard Quincy Noble scored eight points in the quarter for North Texas.

UTSA had a chance to win but couldn’t get off a shot on its last possession in the final seconds.

As the game transitioned to overtime, UTSA responded. Jenkins scored eight points, six of them on three buckets going toward the basket and two on free throws with five seconds left that boosted the Roadrunners into a four-point lead.

Jordyn Carter hit a three for North Texas for the final points. The Mean Green were led in the game by Noble, who scored 27 points. Tommisha Lampkin had 13 points and seven rebounds.

Jenkins, a first-year player for the Roadrunners, has stacked multiple eye-opening performances in her first season in Conference USA after playing two years in the Pac-12 for the USC Trojans.

With her 40 points, she was one off Tesha Smith’s school record set six years ago. She did it by hitting 12 of 20 from the field and three of five on 3-point attempts. At the free throw line, she was 13 of 16.

Jenkins, from Kent, Wash., also has scored in the 30s twice and in the 20s eleven times. She has nine double doubles, with double-figure points and rebounds.

Jordyn Jenkins
Top three scoring games at UTSA
40 on the road at North Texas on Feb. 20, 2023. UTSA won 68-67 in overtime.
37 at home vs. UTEP on Jan. 11, 2023. UTEP won 74-67.
35 on the road at Houston on Dec. 19, 2022. Houston won 93-89 in overtime.

UTSA single-game record
41 points by Tesha Smith vs. Florida Atlantic, Feb. 25, 2017.

Coach Aston’s milestone

In defeating North Texas, a program that she once coached, UTSA coach Karen Aston improved to 300-187 in 15 years, good for a winning percentage of .616. Aston has worked previously at Charlotte, North Texas and Texas.

Records

UTSA: 8-18, 6-11
North Texas: 10-17, 7-10

Notable

Aston is in her second season at UTSA, improving ever-so-gradually a program that finished 7-23 and 3-14 in the C-USA in 2021-22, her first year at the school. UTSA hasn’t won as many as eight games overall and six games in conference in five years. In 2017-18, UTSA finished 9-21 and 6-10.

Coming up

Florida Atlantic at UTSA, Thursday, 7 p.m.
Florida International at UTSA, Saturday, noon.
UTSA at Charlotte, March 2, 5 p.m.
End of regular season

Conference USA tournament

March 8-11 at Frisco

New Year’s Eve matinee: UTSA women hope to end 2022 on a high note against UAB

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Sidney Love. The UTSA women's basketball team lost to Louisiana Tech 62-57 in the Roadrunners' Conference USA opener on Thursday, Dec. 29, 2022, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Sidney Love and the UTSA Roadrunners host the UAB Blazers today at the Convocation Center. Love is a freshman from Steele High School. – Photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Another major test looms today for the UTSA women’s basketball team.

The Roadrunners, improved but still a work in progress in their second season under Coach Karen Aston, host the UAB Blazers in a New Year’s Eve contest at noon in the Convocation Center.

UTSA (2-8, 0-1 in Conference USA) is coming off its first home loss of the season Thursday night.

To recap, the Roadrunners hit a halfcourt shot at the buzzer and led by five points at the half. They led by three at the end of three quarters. But they couldn’t hold on, falling 62-57 to all C-USA guard Keiunna Walker and the Louisiana Tech Lady Techsters.

The Blazers (8-3, 0-2 in Conference USA) likely don’t have a player with Walker’s credentials. But they do feature two capable backcourt players in senior Margaret Whitley and freshman Denim DeShields.

Whitley and DeShields are the sparks for a team that leads Conference USA in scoring. The Blazers and Rice Owls both average 77.4 points per game.

Whitley, DeShields and forward Lyndsey Robson all play big minutes, with the three averaging 25 minutes or more. They’re 1-2-3 in scoring, respectively, for the Blazers and 10th-year coach Randy Norton.

DeShields comes from a notable athletic family, with her father, Delino DeShields, Sr., having played 13 years in the major league baseball. Her brother, Delino Jr., is in the major leagues and her sister, Diamond, makes her living in professional basketball in the WNBA.

To beat UAB, UTSA will need to guard the three-point line. The Blazers lead the conference in shooting from beyond the arc at 37.8 percent, with Whitley hitting at an eye-opening 48.3 clip.

Lately, the Blazers have been frustrated in losing their first two conference games — both on the road — to the Charlotte 49ers and the UTEP Miners. The Blazers were stymied in a 76-58 loss at UTEP Thursday night on the first game of a road trip through Texas.

Records

UTSA 2-8, 0-1
UAB 8-3, 0-2

Coming up

UTSA at Middle Tennessee State, Jan. 5
UTSA at Western Kentucky, Jan. 7

Monster rally in Houston boosts UTSA leading into C-USA play

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Jordyn Jenkins. UTSA beat Idaho 76-69 in women's basketball on Saturday, Dec. 10, 2022, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA forward Jordyn Jenkins averages 20.6 points per game to rank 16th in the nation and first in Conference USA. The Roadrunners open C-USA play by hosting the Louisiana Tech Lady Techsters Thursday night. – File photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

More than a week has passed since a remarkable women’s college basketball game unfolded at the Fertitta Center in Houston.

In the beginning, the Houston Cougars roamed the passing lanes and pounced on just about every pass thrown by the young UTSA Roadrunners.

An early lead for Houston ballooned to 10. Then to 15. As UTSA kept throwing the ball away, the advantage for the home team widened to 21.

It was only the second quarter, and it looked as if the Cougars might win by 30 or 40 or more. Well, let’s just say that it didn’t quite work out that way.

With UTSA junior forward Jordyn Jenkins putting on a show en route to a career-high 35 points, the Roadrunners opened eyes by unleashing a monster rally, coming all the way back into a few second-half tie scores, before losing 93-89 in overtime.

In one sense, the Houston game is ancient history. It was played nine days ago. Before Christmas. Back before the arctic blast.

In the present tense, the weather has warmed again, and UTSA (2-7) is back home at the Convocation Center, hoping to start a winning trend to coincide with the start of Conference USA play.

Eager to put all those pre-conference losses behind them, Roadrunners are preparing to host the Louisiana Tech Lady Techsters (7-4) on Thursday night, before they entertain the UAB Blazers (8-2) on Saturday afternoon.

Their last game, nonetheless, remains top of mind.

Coaches and players keep talking about Houston. Aston played the tape of it for her players’ again on Tuesday morning.

The video showed two versions of the Roadrunners.

One of them failed to answer the call after the opening tip, committed numerous turnovers and eventually fell behind, 39-18, midway through the second quarter.

The other played with heart and rallied on a 32-11 streak over a 13-minute stretch that spanned the end of the second and most of the third periods.

That same team battled to the end, with standout performances from several players, including double-digit scoring efforts from Jenkins, Elyssa Coleman, Kyra White and Alexis Parker.

“We re-watched (the tape) this morning,” Aston said late Tuesday afternoon. “What I still don’t know is, what turns their motors on? I mean, I don’t know if they were nervous to start the game, or what.

“They looked a little bit frozen, and then — somewhere in the midst of the second quarter — we got our motors running.”

White, a junior from Judson, said the team still feels positive vibes from the Houston game, even though it will go down as a loss in the record book.

And even though UTSA lost some close games earlier in the season with inconsistent play in the fourth quarter, she said she has a good feeling about the team overall.

“Our last game was Houston, and we lost in overtime, but the game showed a lot for our team,” White said. “We showed grit. We showed fight. We just simply didn’t quit. It was a good way to leave before (Christmas) break.

“Coming back, we’re just trying to get everybody back under their feet and and ready to go play.”

From this point forward, every team that UTSA plays will have Jenkins’ name circled on the scouting report.

At Houston, she struggled early with the physicality of the Cougars’ defense, but she kept battling and hit 12 of 17 shots from the field.

In one stretch, she wowed the crowd at the Fertitta Center with deft moves that you might see in a pro game.

Once, while set up at the elbow, she pivoted, spun through traffic and flipped up a shot left-handed into the net.

In another sequence, she came down on the fast break, sweeping past defenders and into the paint, to score again with the left hand.

The right-handed Jenkins leads Conference USA at 20.6 points per game, while making 50 percent from the field and 40 percent from three.

She’s on a roll now, having scored 20 or more in five of her last six outings.

“She’s extremely skilled,” Aston said. “There’s no question. She works on her craft. I mean, she’s in the gym all the time (and) she wants to be great.

“The growth of our team is that we’re starting to figure out who can do what, and I think our team is comfortable knowing they need to get her the ball some.

“I’m not sure we knew that a month ago.

“For her, she’s making better decisions when she gets doubled. Right now, people are, I would say, picking poison against us.”

Aston said the team still needs other players to step up and contribute.

“We also need to see Elyssa Coleman get the ball a little more down low,” the coach said. “She was efficient when she got it (at Houston), and then, you know, we need to have (other) players make open (perimeter) shots.”

Coming up

Louisiana Tech at UTSA, Thursday, 7 p.m.
UAB at UTSA, Saturday, noon.

C-USA standings

FAU 1-0, 8-2
UTEP 1-0, 8-2
Middle Tennessee 1-0, 8-2
Charlotte 1-0, 5-5
Western Kentucky 0-0, 3-6
North Texas 0-0, 3-7
UTSA 0-0, 2-7
Rice 0-1, 9-1
UAB 0-1, 8-2
Louisiana Tech 0-1, 7-4
FIU 0-1, 5-5

Comeback falls short for the UTSA women as Houston wins, 93-89, in overtime

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Guard Laila Blair knocked down six free throws in six attempts and assisted on a field goal in the final 1:27 Monday, lifting the University of Houston Cougars to a 93-89 victory over the UTSA Roadrunners.

Blair’s efforts helped Houston thwart a massive comeback by the Roadrunners, who trailed by as many as 21 points in the second quarter. The Roadrunners, behind junior forward Jordyn Jenkins, rallied on a 32-11 run to tie the game near the end of the third period.

As Houston pulled away again in the fourth quarter, leading by nine with a little more than a minute remaining, UTSA rallied again to tie and send the game to the extra period. Kyra White scored five points in the comeback and freshman Maya Linton sank two free throws with six seconds left to tie it, 80-80.

Houston’s Tiara Young missed a layup in the final seconds that could have won the game, but it bounced off the rim, and the Cougars failed to get off another shot.

In the overtime, Young opened the period with a jumper as the Cougars took the first lead. Jenkins followed by grabbing on offensive rebound and putting it back to tie the score. But when Young made both free throws with 3:35 remaining, Houston had the lead by two. Ultimately, the Cougars would never relinquish it.

Jenkins scored 35 points and pulled down 10 rebounds to lead the Roadrunners, who fell to 2-7 on the season and 0-5 on the road. UTSA is 0-2 in neutral site games. Tiara Young led the Cougars with 21 points.

Records

UTSA 2-7
Houston 3-9

Individuals

Scoring: UTSA — Jordyn Jenkins 35, Elyssa Coleman 15, Kyra White 12, Alexis Parker 11. Houston — Tiara Young 21, Laila Blair 20, Bria Patterson 15, Tatyana Hill 10.

Rebounding: UTSA — Jenkins 10, Coleman 5, White 5. Houston — Tatyana Hill 12, Tiara Young 4.

Team stats

Field goal percentage: UTSA, 32-61, 52.5. Houston, 28-66, 42.4.
Rebounds: UTSA, 44. Houston, 29. Offensive rebounds: UTSA, 13. Houston 10.
Turnovers: UTSA, 36. Houston, 22. Steals: UTSA, 12. Houston, 16.

Coming up

Conference USA opener for UTSA at Louisiana Tech, Dec. 29; UTSA at UAB, Dec. 31.

UTSA’s Jenkins shines after making necessary adjustments

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Jordyn Jenkins. UTSA beat Idaho 76-69 in women's basketball on Saturday, Dec. 10, 2022, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Jordyn Jenkins had one of her best games as a UTSA player with 22 points, eight rebounds, four assists and three steals. – Photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The formula for Jordyn Jenkins’ success on Saturday afternoon was pretty simple. UTSA’s rising standout in women’s basketball made good decisions with the ball. When the 6-foot-1 junior forward wasn’t passing for an assist, she was swinging it to a teammate.

Then, when the traffic cleared, and the ball returned to her hands, she’d either make the Idaho Vandals pay by sticking an easy bucket from close range or by hitting a jumper from the perimeter.

Sidney Love. UTSA beat Idaho 76-69 in women's basketball on Saturday, Dec. 10, 2022, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Freshman Sidney Love from San Antonio-area Steele High School scored a season-high 17 points for her third straight game in double figures. — Photo by Joe Alexander

Unlike previous games when she was saddled with early foul trouble, she stayed away from those agonizing whistles in scoring a team-high 22 points for the Roadrunners in a much-needed 76-69 victory.

“Mostly when it comes to me fouling, they’re offensive fouls,” Jenkins said. “Like, very rare (are they) defensive fouls on the shot. I mean, I really try not to foul anyways. I feel like I have good body control.

“So, I just kind of have to keep that in mind and also have the mindset that I can’t foul. It helps when the team defense is good, then there’s less pressure on me.”

In losing five of six games to start the season, including three in a row, the Roadrunners’ team defense was not good. UTSA coach Karen Aston said as much on the eve of a match with the Vandals of the Big Sky Conference.

A 60-55 loss at Texas State on Nov. 30, when UTSA sqauandered an early 12-point lead, was still front of mind through nine days of practice between games. After holding Idaho to 33.3 percent shooting from the field, though, Aston felt much better.

“Well, I think we were ready to play,” the coach said. “After the bad taste we had in our mouths at Texas State, unfortunately for the players, we had a long break. We did a lot of practicing. I think we accomplished some things … I (think) our defense is improving. Attention to detail is improving.

Queen Ulabo. UTSA beat Idaho 76-69 in women's basketball on Saturday, Dec. 10, 2022, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Senior Queen Ulabo came off the bench against Idaho and sparked UTSA with a season-high 15 points. – Photo by Joe Alexander

“I thought some adjustments we made during the game made a difference. I thought Jordyn adjusted as the game went along. You can tell every game, people have a game plan on her, and what they’re going to do with her. I thought she made a lot of extra passes today and didn’t force things.

“She kind of took what they gave her.”

With Aston starting three freshmen (Sidney Love, Alexis Parker and Maya Linton) and playing with as many as three on the floor at a time through the game, the young Roadrunners responded, building a lead as large as 19 points early in the fourth quarter.

At the outset, they set the tone, opening with three former San Antonio high school players in the backcourt — Love (from Steele), Parker (Brandeis) and junior Kyra White (Judson). Up front were Jenkins, from Kent, Wash., and Linton from Duncanville High School.

When White tweaked an ankle early in the first quarter, she hobbled off the court, returned briefly and then was shut down for the remainder of the afternoon. It was a situation that could have been disastrous, because the 5-10 USC transfer has been one of the team’s most productive players.

But even with White on the bench, the Roadrunners brought in players determined to win, all making plays, hitting shots and gradually building the lead. At the end of the first quarter, it was 18-14. By halftime, it was 37-28.

Karen Aston. UTSA beat Idaho 76-69 in women's basketball on Saturday, Dec. 10, 2022, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Karen Aston’s UTSA Roadrunners improved to 2-5 for the season and 2-0 at home in the Convocation Center. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Four freshmen — Parker, Love, Siena Guttadauro and Madison Cockrell — had a hand in an impressive 11-0 run to the halftime buzzer. In the second half, the Roadrunners kept up the pressure by hitting the Vandals with another 11-0 streak, this one at the outset of the fourth quarter.

Junior Queen Ulabo started it off with a three out of the corner. Love, the prep player of the year in the San Antonio area last season, capped it with her own corner three that hiked the score to 65-46 with 6:16 remaining.

Jenkins, meanwhile, imposed her will at almost every turn. In reaching the 20-point mark for the third time in her last four games, she hit eight of 13 shots from the field in the face of an assortment of traps and double teams.

Jenkins also had eight rebounds, four assists and three steals. And, what about fouls? She was whistled for only one, while drawing seven from the Vandals who were doing their best to defend a player with significant skill and touch on her shot.

In postgame interviews, she said she’s dealing with the extra attention from opposing teams as best she can.

“Like coach said, I’m going to just have to take whatever the other team gives me,” said Jenkins, now averaging 18.4 points per game. “I’ve noticed on the court (it’s) a lot more blurry, with a lot more people in my vision, so, in order to make myself better … whatever I do, it needs to be quick.

“Getting my teammates open is what I need to do a little more, just because they’re doubling me.”

Records

Idaho 2-6
UTSA 2-5

Coming up

UTSA at Incarnate Word, Thursday, 6 p.m.

Alexis Parker. UTSA beat Idaho 76-69 in women's basketball on Saturday, Dec. 10, 2022, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

The UTSA Roadrunners did a nice job in holding the Idaho Vandals to 33.3 percent shooting from the field and 32.1 percent from three. But once again, they allowed their opponent to take too many trips to the free-throw line. Idaho hit 20 of 26 free throws for the game, including 15 of 17 in the second half. UTSA, playing at home, made 14 of 21 freebies. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Notable

The five UTSA freshmen that Aston brought into the program over the summer all made their mark against the Vandals. Love had 17 points, five rebounds and two assists. Parker played the most minutes of any of them with 31. She had five points, three assists and a steal. Linton, tasked with guarding Idaho scoring whiz Beyonce Bea, had four rebounds. Off the bench, Cockrell had three points and a steal. Guttadauro finished with three points, hitting from behind the arc on a chaotic play at the end of the first half.

Queen’s day

Senior guard/forward Queen Ulabo had a big day offensively, coming off the bench to score 15 points in 25 minutes. Ulabo made five of eight from the field and four of six from three. Her four three-point baskets were a season high.

Idaho standouts

Guard Sydney Gandy and forward Beyonce Bea led the Vandals with 23 points apiece. A 6-1 forward who likes to play on the perimeter, Bea came into the game eighth in the nation in scoring, averaging 22 per game. UTSA did a decent job in holding her to four of 16 shooting from the field. Bea made UTSA pay, though, in hitting 15 of 18 at the free-throw line. Gandy sank eight of 19 afield, including five of 13 from three.

Video highlights

Alexis Parker’s sweet dish

Siena’s crazy play

Love is all you need

Correction

Sorry about the misspelled name in my fourth-quarter tweet (see above). UTSA’s freshman point guard is Sidney Love.