Sports

Men’s basketball off to rough start

Ryan Garza

November 14, 2018

Adokiye Iyaye jumps for a layup. Lindsey Thomas/The Paisano

The men’s basketball team got off to a not-so-hot start, losing their home season opener to Division II St. Edwards on last second free throws. The ‘Runners look to redeem themselves by taking on an NCAA basketball powerhouse at home: the Oklahoma Sooners.

UTSA found themselves in a hole to start the game, unable to score any points during the first eight minutes of the game. The Roadrunners were finally able to get on the board when forward Adrian Rodriguez made a nice move on a Sooner defender to make an easy layup.

The Convocation Center nearly exploded when guard Keaton Wallace hit back-to-back three-pointers to put the Roadrunners within two points, with under five minutes left in the first half. The game would then become tied when Rodriguez just beat the shot clock by sinking a hook shot to tie up the ‘Runners and Sooners at 26.

In the final three minutes of the first half, Oklahoma went on an 11-1 run to take a 39-29 lead going into the half. Wallace was leading the way in scoring with nine total points. As a team, they had 14 points in the paint and eight off of Sooner turnovers.

Keaton Wallace dribbles towards the basket. Lindsey Thomas/The Paisano

Wallace made his presence known at the start of the second half by skirting past a Sooner defender and tying up the game again at 46 to send the Convocation Center into a frenzy. UTSA would jump out to a four-point lead midway through the second half, but after a run by the Sooners the lead was lost.

For much of the second half the Roadrunners could not keep up with the fast-paced Oklahoma offense and ended up finding themselves down by 23 late in the second half. The Roadrunners were unable to overcome the Sooner surge and ended up losing the game 87-67.

The trio of Nick Allen, Giovanni De Nicolao and Wallace combined for 43 points total. De Nicolao also ended with a double-double and a final stat line of 12 points and 10 rebounds. As a team the Roadrunners shot 35 percent from the floor and were able to rack up 32 points inside the paint.

The Roadrunners will go back on the road until Dec. 1, and will be taking on the Texas State Bobcats.

About the Contributor

Ryan Garza, Editor-in-Chief

Ryan is a third-year geography major. He loves all sports and participated in various sports during his life. Since joining The Paisano in the fall of 2017, Ryan worked his way up from being a staff writer to taking over the Sports section as editor in May of 2018. He has also attended one UTSA football game every year since the team began playing. Growing up in little Agua Dulce, Texas, he enjoys watching and playing various sports with his friends and traveling across the country. When he is not working, you can catch him rooting for the Baltimore Ravens, Houston Rockets, Houston Astros and UTSA Roadrunners.