Second-half surges push Lions to 80-69 win at UT Tyler.

TYLER – The Texas A&M University-Commerce men’s basketball team used an 11-point run in the second half to pull away and earn an 80-69 win over the University of Texas at Tyler on Saturday evening in the Herrington Patriot Center. 

The Lions move to 5-3 overall and 2-1 in Lone Star Conference action, while the Patriots are now 3-5 overall and 0-3 in league action. 

A&M-Commerce faces a quick turnaround, as the blue and gold will host No. 11 Missouri Southern at Noon on Monday for Education Day presented by Alliance Bank. 

HEAD COACH JARET von ROSENBERG AFTER THE GAME

On overcoming a slow start: “It took us a minute to get settled into the game. I really liked every shot we got and felt we got some good ones. When you start 1-of-10 from three and nine of them are really good shots, you don’t change what you’re doing, you’ve just got to step up and make the next one. We did a nice job of that tonight.” 

On withstanding an active UT Tyler: “Unlike other years we’ve had, we’ve got a solid 10-man rotation, and we can withstand that a little better than we could in the past. We’re able to keep playing, hit shots, get stops, and you saw how it ended up for us.” 

On the play of Wayne Stewart: “He’s earned that from what’s he’s done in practice. He’s not always going to have that level of production on the stat sheet, but he’s a mainstay. He did that in only 24 minutes, so he was really efficient. He made them pay whenever we could get the ball near the basket, and we were very efficient down there.” 

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

– The Lions shot 45.7 percent (32-of-70) from the floor while limiting UT Tyler to 38.8 percent (26-of-67).

– Wayne Stewart (Philadelphia, Pa.) led all scorers with 25 points on 11-of-14 shooting, while also grabbing eight rebounds.

– Deonta Terrell (Chicago, Ill.) netted 21 points with eight rebounds and five assists.

– Deon Barrett (Lancaster) made five three-pointers on the way to 16 points, four rebounds, five assists, and three steals.

– Darnell Wright (Chicago, Ill.) was a rebound shy of a double-double with 10 points, nine rebounds, and four assists. 

HOW IT HAPPENED

The early stages of the game went back-and-forth, as neither side was able to stretch their lead to more than one possession until the 13:33 mark when UT Tyler’s Ty Glover hit a free throw to put the home side up 14-10. That was part of a 14-point Patriot run that gave UTT its largest lead of the day at 23-12 with just under 10 minutes to play. 

A pair of Stewart free throws started a quick rally that saw the Lions score 10 points in just over a minute. Alex Peavy (Smithson Valley) drilled a three-pointer, and Stewart’s corner triple at the 6:29 mark of the half tied the game up at 25-all. 

The Patriots took a four-point lead with just over two minutes left in half, then Barrett hit a long three-pointer to start a Lion run to end the half. The Lions scored the final six points of the period and took a 34-32 lead into the halftime break. 

The early portion of the second half was tight before the Lions broke the game open. The lead for A&M-Commerce stood at 48-45 with 13:22 to go before TAMUC scored ten straight points. Barrett hit a three, Terrell scored in the paint, and Alberto Moreno (Ingenio, Gran Canaria) hit a three-pointer and a fastbreak layup to cap a run over fewer than two minutes with a 58-45 lead with 11:36 to go.

Another Lion run put any hopes of a comeback out of reach for the home side. The blue and gold netted 11 consecutive points on four Stewart layups and a deep Barrett trey to make it 69-48 with 8:15 to play. 

A frenetic pace in the final minutes saw the Patriots narrow the deficit to 11 points in the last minute, but Lion’s advantage was too much to overcome.

No. 10 Lions rout UT Tyler, 71-38

TAMUC ties program record for fewest points allowed in a conference game

TYLER – The No. 10 Texas A&M University-Commerce women’s basketball team started cold, then used a dominant defensive effort to put up a 71-38 win over the University of Texas at Tyler at the Herrington Patriot Center on Saturday afternoon. 

With the rout, the Lions move to 9-0 overall and 3-0 in the Lone Star Conference, while UT Tyler falls to 2-5 overall and 0-3 in LSC action. The Lions have now achieved the most consecutive wins under head coach Jason Burton in his six-year tenure. The 38 points conceded ties the program record for fewest points allowed in a conference game. 

A&M-Commerce returns to the floor on Thursday at Texas Women with a 7:00 pm tipoff. The game will be at Kitty MaGee Arena in Denton. 

HEAD COACH JASON BURTON AFTER THE GAME

On the game: “In the first half, it looked like we were just going through the motions. Then the second half, the number 10 team in the country showed up, and we played the way we are capable of playing. When we do that, this team is very successful. We are having fun, the team is cheering for each other, and that’s what makes it fun. We are doing it together.”

On the depth of the team: “Everybody is averaging 10 minutes a game, which is great. That experience will pay dividends at the end of the season. When you have everyone be able to get game time and conference experience, you will be ready. We have been able to play a lot of people. And our press has been able to wear people out.”

Getting 15 steals: “The majority of our takeaways came in the second half today. It is a team that gets better defensively as the game goes on. They are buying into the scouting reports and are executing game plans. When you can do that, it leads to easier points on the other end. We talk about it, let our defense create offense for us. We did a good job of doing that in the second half.”

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

– Mykiel Burleson (Pflugerville) led all scorers with 19 points, including tying a career-high with five three-pointers.

– Chania Wright (DeSoto) scored 16 points, and Alexis Bryant (Pflugerville) scored 12 points.

– Agang Tac (Sachse) grabbed nine rebounds, and Bryant and Juliana Louis (Long Beach, Calif.) each snagged seven boards. Maddison Glass (Missouri City – Hightower) passed out seven assists.

– The Lions forced 29 Patriot turnovers, with 15 of those coming on Lion steals.

– A&M-Commerce shot 40 percent (28-of-70) from the field and limited UT Tyler to 27.5 percent (11-of-40).

– The game marks the Lions’ ninth win in a row, the most consecutive wins in the Jason Burton era.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Neither team started the game with offensive rhythm, as nearly two minutes elapsed before the first points scored. The Lions didn’t make a field goal until the 5:31 mark of the first quarter when Burleson drained a three-pointer to tie the game at 5-all. She also gave the Lions a 9-8 lead with a layup a few seconds later. A&M-Commerce went on an eight-point run towards the end of the period, with Wright scoring five of those points. Her three-pointer with just over a minute to go gave the Lions a 17-10 advantage, and TAMUC took a 17-12 lead into the second quarter. 

The Lions’ cold shooting carried over into the second quarter as they made only 5-of-13 field goals, 1-of-7 three-pointers, and none of their three free throws. Dyani Robinson (Cypress – Langham Creek) was the only Lion with multiple baskets in the frame, including the three-pointer. A nine-point run gave the Lions a 28-16 lead on a DesiRay Kernal (Newton, Kan.) basket with just over three minutes left, but the Patriots were able to narrow the margin down to 28-22 at the break. 

Out of the halftime break, the Lion defense turned up the pressure and turned that into points. UT Tyler was held scoreless for the first five-and-a-half minutes as the Lions opened on a 10-0 run, with Bryant scoring six of those points. While the Patriot basket briefly broke the string, the Lions scored 10 of the quarter’s final 11 points. Burleson’s three-pointer just before the horn gave A&M-Commerce a 48-26 lead with 10 minutes to play, as TAMUC outscored its hosts 20-4 in the quarter. UT Tyler attempted only four shots in the 10 minutes. 

Both teams scored five points in the first two minutes of the fourth quarter, but the Lions immediately snuffed out any opportunity for a Patriot comeback with an eight-point run. Wright scored six of those points with a three-pointer and a three-point play to make it 61-31 with under seven minutes to go. The Lions held UT Tyler without a field goal in the final six minutes and cruised to another win.

 

22 Lions to participate in December 2019 Commencement Ceremonies

COMMERCE – The Texas A&M University-Commerce athletics department celebrated the graduation of its student-athletes this weekend, as 22 Lions will participate in December Commencement ceremonies in the Field House on Friday and Saturday. 

22 student-athletes, spirit team members, and employees are participating in graduation, with 16 earning bachelors’ degrees and six earning their Master’s degree.

The December graduates were honored with a reception on Friday night following the graduate program’s commencement ceremony. Ceremonies for bachelor’s degrees are on Saturday.  

W. Track & Field	Ashley Bassett	Master of Science – Marketing
Football	Felipe Chambers	Sociology
M. Track & Field	Rashard Clark	Learning & Technology
Soccer	Jazsmin Coronado	Computer Science
Football	Jalon Edwards-Cooper	Business Administration
Football	DD Fletcher	Master of Science – Health Kinesiology & Sports Studies
M. Basketball	Craig Fofang	Mathematics
M. Basketball	Austin Grandstaff	General Studies
M. Golf	Blake Hartford	Mathematics
Dance	Kennedi Harris	Business Administration
Administration	Marcus Jensen	Masters of Science – Health Kinesiology & Sports Studies
Football	Kristov Martinez	Master of Science – Secondary Education
M. Track & Field	Sergio Mena Marcuello	Masters of Business Administration
Volleyball	Payton McMillan	Finance
Football	Vili Paea	General Studies
Softball	Cally Pausewang	Mathematics
Football	Peyton Searcy	History
M. Basketball	Simon Shafack	General Studies
M. Track & Field	Devontae Steele	General Studies
M. Basketball	Wayne Stewart	General Studies
Football	Ovie Urevbu	Masters of Science – Health Kinesiology & Sports Studies
Football	Kane Wilson	Learning and Technology

Malcolm Woods named Under Armour Student-Athlete of the Week.

COMMERCE – Texas A&M University-Commerce track student-athlete Malcolm Woods has been named the Under Armour Student-Athlete of the Week by Lion Athletics. 

Woods – a redshirt senior from Sachse – was one of the highlight performers of the indoor track and field team’s first weekend of action this year. At the Crimson and Gold Invitational hosted by Pittsburg State, he was the top collegiate finisher in the men’s 60-meter dash with a time of 6.81 seconds. His time ranks fourth-fastest in the nation in the opening week of competition. 

He was also part of the 4×400 meter relay team with Xavier Harvey (Dallas – Bishop Dunne) and newcomers Jordan Johnson (Gauteng, South Africa), and Chandler King (Hughes Springs). That quartet put up a time of 3:21.69 to start the season, which ranks in the top 15 in the country.  

Woods has also shown great ambition and work in his academic endeavors during his final year of competitive eligibility and has been a team leader.

The Under Armour Student-Athlete of the Week will be awarded by Lion Athletics each week during the academic year. 

2019-20 UNDER ARMOUR STUDENT-ATHLETES OF THE WEEK

Sept. 10 – Timon Kemboi, Men’s Cross Country

Sept. 17 – E.J. Thompson, Football

Sept. 24 – Cora Welch, Soccer

Oct. 1 – Sydney Andersen, Volleyball

Oct. 8 – Brandi Stalder, Women’s Cross Country

Oct. 15 – Dominique Ramsey, Football

Oct. 22 – Shelley Chapron, Volleyball

Oct. 29 – Miklo Smalls, Football

Nov. 5 – Leslie Campuzano, Soccer

Nov. 12 – Dyani Robinson, Women’s Basketball

Nov. 27 – Alexis Bryant, Women’s Basketball & Alex Shillow, Football

Dec. 4 – Preston Wheeler & Elijah Earls, Football

Dec. 13 – Malcolm Woods, Men’s Track & Field

 

 

 

Josh Manck

Associate Athletics Director for Marketing and Communications | Texas A&M University-Commerce

Committed to a “Best in Class” student-athlete experience

Office: 903.886.5131 Mobile: 817.487.5136

Mailing Address: P.O. Box 3011 | Commerce, TX 75429

Physical Address: 2600 Neal Street, Commerce, TX 75429

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Marcus Jensen

Director of Athletic Communications | Texas A&M University-Commerce

Office: 903.468.3027 | Mobile: 801.624.8529

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