ARLINGTON – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros men's basketball team dropped a Western Athletic Conference (WAC) game Thursday, 91-73, to the UT Arlington (UTA) Mavericks at College Park Center.
Junior guard
Elijah Elliott led UTRGV (6-12, 2-5 WAC) with 22 points and seven rebounds. Freshman guard
J.J. Howard scored 16 points and was a perfect 6-for-6 at the free throw line. Senior forward
Daylen Williams added nine points and six rebounds.
UT Arlington (9-9, 4-3 WAC) had five players in double digit scoring.
Phillip Russell led the way with 24 points and six assists.
Makaih Williams scored 20,
Dajuan Gordon added 14 and
Brandyn Talbot and
Shemar Wilson contributed 11 each. Wilson had a double-double, hauling in 10 rebounds.
The contest was defensive through the first five minutes, with both teams missing some shots but the Vaqueros making enough to have an early 5-3 lead. Elliott took a missed dunk up the court for a three-pointer to get the scoring rolling. Junior guard
Sherman Brashear knocked down a contested jumper to reclaim the lead at 7-5.
UTRGV's commitment to lock-down defense shined through the first half of the opening frame as the Vaqueros prevented the Mavericks from making a shot from the field for nearly six minutes. Junior guard
Hasan Abdul-Hakim'scorner three tied things up at 18-18 midway through the first half, which saw plenty of ties and lead changes.
The Mavericks found a rhythm down the stretch of the opening half to jump on top, 33-24. UTA got hot from the behind the arc and used solid defense to force several missed shots and an offensive foul on a tough drive from UTRGV. But the Vaqueros went on a run sparked by a great floater in traffic from redshirt freshman guard
C.J.Booker and speedy guard play overall, trimming the deficit to 36-31.
UTA was in control to close the first half and took a 43-33 lead into the locker room at the break.
The Mavericks' lead grew to 51-33 early in a tense start to the second half. Heated words and shoves were exchanged, leading to two technical fouls against the Vaqueros and one against UTA. A pair of steals and shifty offensive from Elliott resulted in a scoring flurry for UTRGV that cut into the UTA advantage.
Elliott and Williams showed off their smooth moves to keep the Vaqueros fighting. The game continued to be chippy and physical as both teams pushed to the final whistle. Sophomore forward
Alex Horiuk contributed big minutes late and Howard scored 12 second-half points to lead a respectable effort as UTRGV played from behind.
Up next for the Vaqueros will be a 6:30 p.m. WAC contest at Tarleton State on Saturday.
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