DENTON, Texas – Looking to make it three straight wins in the Super Pit, the UTSA men’s basketball team (4-14, 0-6 AMER) are also aiming to get out of the current losing skid, facing North Texas (11-7, 2-3 AMER) on Wednesday night in Denton. Tipoff between the Roadrunners and Mean Green is set for 7 p.m. at the Super Pit and will be broadcast on ESPN+.
On the Air and on the Web
Wednesday’s 7 p.m. tipoff with the Mean Green at UNT Coliseum, a.k.a. the Super Pit, will be streamed on ESPN+, with Kyle Youmans (play-by-play) and DJ Draper (analyst) on the broadcast call.
The radio broadcast will appear on Sports Radio AM 760 The Ticket with Andy Everett (play-by-play) covering the action live from Denton. The broadcast will feature a 30-minute pregame and 15-minute postgame show – available online at Ticket760.com or via the free iHeartRadio app.
North Texas Athletics will also provide Live Stats.
About the UTSA Roadrunners
The Roadrunners followed through on strong offensive performances last week at Memphis and against Rice, shooting 42.5 percent on the week, but the losing skid remains at 11 games. UTSA has captured narrow slow-paced victories in each of the past two trips to Denton, but faces the challenge of another first-season staff and roster from the Mean Green – one that has already earned some big-name conference wins.
On the season, UTSA averages 68.6 ppg on 38.7 percent shooting as one of the youngest rosters in the country. Opponents have shot 43.7 percent while the Roadrunners have registered an NCAA-79th 4.2 bpg, collecting 37.7 rpg, including an NCAA 63rd-best 12.8 offensive rpg.
On the offensive rise over the past week, freshman Dorian Hayes averaged 17.5 ppg on 52.2 percent shooting against the Owls and Tigers – he currently is third in scoring at 8.9 ppg on the year and has 12.0 ppg against conference opponents. Senior LJ Brown saw expanded minutes against the Tigers and lit it up for a career night, putting away 14 points on 4-of-8 shooting from behind the arc at FedExForum. Grad guard Jamir Simpson added his 16th double-figure game on Sunday and leads the team with 15.8 ppg, listing at seventh among American scorers. Sophomore Baboucarr Njie had a 23-point outburst against the Owls and registered 15 rebounds with seven blocks on the week, ranking 71st nationally with 1.7 bpg, scoring 7.4 ppg on the year and adding 5.4 rpg to rank second on the team in rebounds. Freshman Kaidon Rayfield paces UTSA on the boards at 5.6 rpg.
About the North Texas Mean Green
The Mean Green are 11-7 in the first year under Daniyal Robinson, with North Texas coming off a huge road win in New Orleans over Tulane, triumphing 71-63. Like most years, North Texas likes to slow things down, averaging 69.7 ppg on 43.7 percent shooting, featuring one of the slowest tempos and possession length averages in the country – but still finding space to run at 12.8 fast break ppg. Also typical of North Texas over the years, the Mean Green are stout defenders, ranking 15th in the NCAA with an American-best 64.8 opposing ppg, holding foes to an American-low 41.0 percent shooting and 29 percent beyond the arc. They average 15.6 turnovers forced and 9.6 steals per game, ranking in the top 20 nationally in both. UNT has lost two straight at the Super Pit since defeating Tulsa on Jan. 4.
A sophomore guard who joined Robinson from Cleveland State, Je’Shawn Robinson has started every night and paces the Mean Green with 16.4 ppg, shooting 37.1 percent and putting down a team-high 41 threes – also topping UNT with 35 steals and adding 33 assists with 3.4 rpg. Coming over from UTEP, David Terrell Jr. is second in scoring at 12.7 ppg, but also dishes out 5.0 apg to rank second in the American (65th NCAA), along with another 27 steals and 3.6 rpg. Another from Cleveland State, senior forward Dylan Arnett averages 7.9 ppg and leads on the boards with 5.8 rpg and a team-high 21 blocks.
Series History
UTSA has claimed the past two trips to the Super Pit by a total of six points, including last February’s 54-50 thriller. The Roadrunners trail 22-14 in the series that dates back UTSA’s inaugural season in 1981-82 – with UTSA going 6-10 in Denton over the years. Last time around, UTSA’s defense held off UNT with a steal on the final possession of a two-point game, leading to free throws to grow the final margin. Raekwon Horton finished with a career-high 23 points on 8-of-11 shooting, going 7-for-7 at the free throw line, while Primo Spears chipped in 15 points with 11 from Smurf Millender.
Up Next
On Saturday, UTSA gets its first rematch of the year, with Temple coming to the Convo for Rowdy Rodeo with a 1 p.m. tipoff.
- UTSA -