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RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros men's basketball team fell to the Grand Canyon University Lopes 87-79 on Thursday at the UTRGV Fieldhouse.
 
Junior Javon Levi led the Vaqueros (6-14, 2-5 WAC) by posting his third double-double with 15 points, a career-high tying 13 assists and three steals. Graduate student Jordan Jackson scored a team-high 16 points with four rebounds and four assists. Freshman Quinton Johnson II scored 15 points with two steals and two blocks. 
 
The Vaqueros forced 21 turnovers, scoring 26 points off those turnovers.
 
Alessandro Lever led the Lopes (9-12, 4-3 WAC) with 20 points, six rebounds and six assists. Isiah Brown scored 18 points while hitting four three-pointers. Jovan Blacksher Jr. scored 13 points with six rebounds, six assists and three steals. Carlos Johnson scored 13 points with four assists. Mikey Dixon also finished with 13 points.
 
The Lopes scored the first five points of the game while jumping out to leads of 8-2 and 10-4. Jackson answered with a three to spark a 9-2 run that put UTRGV up 13-12.
 
The game stayed within two possessions until a Lever layup gave the Lopes a 34-26 lead with 4:59 remaining in the first half. The Vaqueros went on another 9-2 run, punctuated by a jumper by sophomore Sean Rhea, to pull within 36-35 three minutes later.
 
The Vaqueros were still within one at 45-44 on a three by senior Lesley Varner II with 16:39 remaining. Lopez pushed their lead to 62-53 before a three by junior Chris Freeman sparked a 7-1 run to bring the Vaqueros within 63-60. The Lopes, however, followed with an 8-2 run to go up 71-62. The Vaqueros got as close as five at 73-68 on a Johnson jumper with 3:34 left.
 
UTRGV hosts CSU Bakersfield on Saturday at 7 p.m. Current UTRGV students get free general admission with a valid UTRGV student ID. Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased online at UTRGVTickets.com. Fans purchasing their tickets online prior to game day can save up to $2 per ticket. The party starts at Vaquero Village at 5:30.

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