Dec. 3, 2007
It's not the way things were supposed to work out for The University of Texas-Pan American men's basketball team who dropped to 5-4 after a mental meltdown at the Field House.
For the Broncs four points or two buckets, leave a blemish on their record which could very well be 7-2 had they beaten Pepperdine at the Montana State University Tournament on Friday.
Instead of riding a three-game winning streak into their game against Jackson State this Friday at the Drake University Tournament after posting a convincing 88-74 victory over Alcorn State on Saturday, the men enter a 10-game road trip after suffering a major letdown at the hands of a resilient Western Illinois University, 71-69 on Sam Williams court.
"It seemed like we quit playing, whether I made my guys tentative or not, I don't know but we kind of settled for the three too much. We needed to get the ball down inside and we didn't but you know good teams fight back and Western Illinois fought back, they never quit," UTPA men's basketball head coach Tom Schuberth said.
"We just couldn't get a stop when we needed too and I'm very disappointed. This is the most disappointed I've ever been since I've been a coach here, because I felt like this was a game we should have won."
For the Leathernecks (3-5) it was simply a matter of returning the favor, as the Broncs had taken it to them, 72-59 in Macomb, on Nov. 28.
UTPA looked solid, doing all the little things to pull away for a 37-30 lead at the half. They shot 50 percent from the field, 38.5 from beyond the arc and were perfect from the line shooting 4-of-4 to go along with a 6-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio.
Dexter Shankle (Katy, TX/ James E. Taylor H.S.) led the Broncs with 17 points including four treys on seven attempts from beyond the arc and Zach Trader (LaPorte, TX/LaPorte H.S.) tallied 15 in the loss while Brian Burrell (Nacogdoches, TX/Paris Junior College) was held to 11 points.
Paul Stoll (Lansing, MI/Lansing C.C.) was held to seven points but dished out 11 assists.
The Leathernecks were led by David Jackson's 22 point effort and Josh Rivers chipped in with 15.
The Broncs led by as many as 13 and were up 61-50 with 5:56 left in the game after a Burrell jumper. That's when Western Illinois went on a 15-3 run capped off by a Jackson jumper in the paint which gave them a one-point lead with 1:26.
UTPA had several opportunities to pull ahead, after Stoll attacked the hoop but missed a contested lay up. Trader pulled down the offensive board to give UTPA one last shot at the game but Burrell missed a 3-point attempt with 53 seconds left and the Leathernecks hit their last six free throws down the stretch.
The men will take to the hardwood away from the friendly confines of the Field House when they travel to Des Moines, IA to take on Jackson State, Friday in the first round of the Drake University Tournament.
Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. CT.
UTPA Sports Information
