EDINBURG – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros men's basketball team beat the Texas A&M International University Dustdevils 67-58 in an exhibition game on Saturday at the UTRGV Fieldhouse.
 
Graduate student J.J. Thompson led the Vaqueros with 17 points on 5-of-8 shooting, including 4-of-5 from behind the arc, plus 3-for-4 from the line. Junior Nick Dixon had 12 points, seven rebounds, three assists and two steals. Graduate student Dakota Slaughter had 10 points while going 3-for-6 from behind the arc.
 
Denzel Bellot led the Dustdevils with 20 points on 6-of-11 shooting while going 7-for-7 from the foul line. Arkeem Joseph had 14 points and six rebounds.
 
The game was tight in the opening minutes, but with the Vaqueros down 8-5, Thompson hit back-to-back three-pointers to spark a 16-4 run that saw the Vaqueros go up 21-12.
 
The Dustdevils pulled within seven at 29-22 late in the half, but the Vaqueros went on a 6-1 run to push their lead into double-figures for the first time.
 
After Jordan VanDeKop and Joseph ended the first half with baskets to bring the Dustdevils within eight, the Vaqueros scored the first eight points of the second half as part of a 19-7 run, capped by a four-point play by senior Shaquille Hines, that made it 54-34.
 
The Dustdevils responded with a 15-6 run to pull within 60-49 on a Denzel Bellt jumper, but a Dixon breakaway dunk ended the run and the comeback attempt.
 
The Vaqueros open the regular season on Friday at 6 p.m. when they visit (RV) Miami in a game that can be seen on ESPN3.

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