RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros men's basketball team earned its first win over the Southern Utah (SUU) Thunderbirds, 78- 73, on Wednesday at the UTRGV Fieldhouse.
Junior
Trey Miller led the Vaqueros (7-4, 1-1 Southland Conference) with 21 points to match his career high while recording three steals and seven assists. Junior
Howie Fleming Jr. earned a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds. Graduate student
DK Thorn scored 13 points with six rebounds and fifth-year
K.T. Raimey recorded 16 points.
Jamir Simpson led the Thunderbirds (8-5, 0-0 Western Athletic Conference) with 20 points and a team-high tying 6 rebounds. Dominique Ford and Jamari Sibley each scored 16 points.
In the first four minutes of the game Thorn started off strong with two layups
. SUU went on 7-0 run until senior
Cliff Davis hit a three-pointer, which shifted the momentum to UTRGV's favor. The Vaqueros used a 10-0 run to build a 14-9 lead. Raimey kept the offense rolling by hitting back-to-back threes for a 20-11 lead.
Both teams played tight defense and pushed the pace of the game which led to long scoreless stretches. The Vaqueros kept the Thunderbirds off the board for three-and-a-half-minutes. SUU responded with a 6-0 run to cut the gap to 20-17.
The tempo picked up in the final minutes of the first half and the teams used the energy to exchange shots. UTRGV leaned on its speed to generate offense and held a 34-28 lead going into halftime.
Both teams came out of the break and quickly got their offenses on a roll leading to an exciting second half. The Thunderbirds shot 52% from the field to trim their deficit to one possession several times. They used a 7-0 run to get within 48-47 midway through the second half.
UTRGV showed resilience to answer every SUU run. The Vaqueros only made five three-pointers on 25 attempts but found success driving to the basket. Raimey, Thorn, and Fleming powered the offense with tough layups through contact, leading to a pair of three-point plays and a 62-55 lead.
While SUU continued to fight and make things close, UTRGV responded with sharp free throw shooting to put the game away. The Vaqueros went 15-for-23 from the charity stripe with eight free throws in the final three minutes to secure the win.
Up next, the Vaqueros host College of Biblical Studies Saturday at 2 p.m. at the UTRGV Fieldhouse. Fans can watch on
ESPN+ .
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