Jan. 15, 2007
Box Score
While the fans of the Rio Grande Valley might have been wearing an extra layer of clothing on a cold Monday evening, they were instantly heated up upon entering the UTPA Fieldhouse.
The main reason for the sudden change of temperature came in the form of a hot-shooting Bronc basketball team that connected on 56.6 percent of their shots en route to a dominating 85-57 performance over Texas A&M-International to remain perfect on Sam Williams Court.
For the first time all season, all 12 players that saw action for the Broncs against the Dustdevils found themselves with at least two points in the scoring category at the end of the evening. UTPA also recorded the third-highest free throw shooting performance in program history at 92.9 percent after connecting on 13-of-14 attempts from the charity stripe.
While the score at the end of the evening had the Broncs cruising to a 28-point victory, it didn't start that easy for UTPA as Texas A&M-International jumped out to a 13-10 lead following a lay-in by Angel Encinas, who finished with a game-high 22 points for the Dustdevils.
After falling behind by a trio of points, UTPA proceeded to go on a 22-3 run over the course of the next six minutes, which was capped off by a three-pointer by Dexter Shankle (Katy, TX/James E. Taylor H.S.) to make the score 32-16 with 6:05 remaining in the first half.
The Dustdevils connected on 6-of-9 shots to open up the game, but only three field goal attempts over the final 14:24 of the first frame en route to falling behind by a 37-24 count heading into intermission.
In the second half, the Broncs continued to pour in the points as they were able to build a 19-point advantage at 50-31 with 15:11 remaining in the game following the second of four three-pointers off of the hand of senior Johnathan Chatman (Chicago, IL/Sheridan College). The UTPA guard finished with 12 points in the game as he connected on 4-of-6 shots from behind the three-point arc.
With 7:03 remaining in the contest, Brian Burrell (Nacogdoches, TX/Paris J.C.) connected on a lay-in following a steal and assists from UTPA point guard Paul Stoll (Lansing, MI/Lansing C.C.) to give the Broncs a 70-41 advantage. With the game well in control, the Broncs cruised into the locker room with an 85-57 victory.
The biggest highlight of the evening came in the form of the UTPA point guards as Stoll and Danny Puente (McAllen, TX/McAllen Memorial H.S.) combined to dish out 17 assists while committing only a pair of turnovers in the contest. Each UTPA floor general finished with a career-high in assists as Stoll dished out nine assists while Puente finished with eight assists in the game.
The Broncs had four players reach double figures in the contest with Colin Lien (Waterloo, IA/Southeastern C.C.) leading the way with a team-high 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting to go along with six rebounds and one assist in 22 minutes of action.
Chatman chipped in with 12 points while Burrell and Shankle each collected 10 points in the victory. Kano Edwards (Bridgeport, CT/Western Nebraska C.C.) notched eight points, including 6-of-6 shooting from the charity stripe, and Julius Allgood (Marion, AL/Southern Union State C.C.) added seven points and four rebounds in 12 minutes of action.
The Broncs improved their record to 10-8 on the season, including a spotless 8-0 record on their home court.
UTPA will open up United Basketball League action on Thursday (Jan. 25) when the Broncs travel to Fargo, ND, for a match-up against North Dakota State. Tip-off is set for 8:00 Central Time.
UTPA Sports Information
