RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros men's basketball team fell battled with the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders, as part of the South Texas Showdown, presented by Rally Credit Union, but fell 63-59 on Saturday at the UTRGV Fieldhouse.
The Vaqueros (5-9, 1-4 SLC) got a game-high 15 points from sophomore
Jaylen Washington, who also added seven assists. Junior
Filip Brankovic scored 14 points on 7-of-11 shooting while junior
Koree Cotton added 12 points with seven rebounds.
The Islanders (5-8, 3-2 SLC) got 11 points from Nick Shogbonyo and Sheldon Williams while getting nine points from Leo Torbor.
After a first half that saw eight lead changes and five ties, the second half started with more of the same as Cotton opened the scoring with a jumper and then it was Evran who answered with a jumper of his own to tie the game at 30-30. After a layup from Brankovic, the Islanders went on a 6-0 run to take the 36-32 lead.
The Vaqueros were held without a field goal for over six minutes before a three-pointer from Ricks made it 44-40 with just over 11 minutes to play. Brankovic kept UTRGV in the game with three-straight baskets that got them within 52-48 but the Islanders had an answer for each one.
Washington knocked down a floater and then got a put back bucket to get UTRGV within 60-59 with 1:19 left in the game. With just 12 seconds left, Washington came up big again with a steal and had a good look at the game-winner but went off the front end.
The Vaqueros shot 39% (20-51) from the floor but were held to just 11% (2-19) from three-point range.
Washington got the Vaqueros going early scoring the first four points and then redshirt junior
Marshal Destremau knocked down a three-pointer to give UTRGV the 7-5 lead. After the Islanders went on a 6-0 run to grab the 11-9 lead, both teams exchanged points before a Washington layup gave UTRGV once again at 17-16 with 7:59 to play in the half.
The Islanders answered with a 7-0 run, scoring four of those seven points from the free throw line as they took the 23-19 lead. After a jumper from Haire that gave Corpus Christi the 25-21 lead, Cotton started a 7-3 run with back-to-back buckets as both teams were tied at 28-28 going into halftime.
The Islanders gained three points in the showdown standings to tie it at 10 points apiece. The next showdown event will be the basketball games on Jan. 22 in Corpus Christi.
The Vaqueros return to action on Jan. 5 when they host UIW at 6:30 p.m. at the UTRGV Fieldhouse for Community Heroes Day.
Fans can purchase tickets online at
UTRGVTickets.com. Current UTRGV students receive free general admission with their student ID but will need to claim a ticket at
GoUTRGV.com/StudentTickets. Fans can learn more about game day, including parking information, maps, and the clear bag policy, by visiting
RallyTheValley.com.
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