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SAN ANTONIO — Sophomore Jeromie Hill posted game highs of 16 points and seven rebounds and UTSA outlasted Southeastern Louisiana, 59-51, on Wednesday night at the Convocation Center.
The Roadrunners improved to 15-9 overall and maintained a tie with Stephen F. Austin, their opponent on Saturday, at 7-3 in the league. UTSA also extended its home winning streak to four games with its 10th home conference victory in the last 11 tries. The Lions fell to 8-14 (2-8 SLC).
Hill led three Birds in double figures with his 12th double-digit outing in the last 13 games. The Cairns, Australia, native went 6-of-9 from the floor and added one assist, a blocked shot and a steal in 34 minutes of action.
Junior Michael Hale III and sophomore Igor Nujic pitched in with 10 points and a key defensive play apiece in the final minutes to help UTSA reach seven Southland victories for the fifth consecutive season.
The Roadrunners made just one of their first nine attempts from beyond the 3-point line, but they converted 10-of-19 from inside the arc and 11-of-15 at the charity stripe to help turn a five-point deficit in the first half into a 34-33 lead early in the second.
The Lions reclaimed the lead on a Daron Populist 3-pointer and later extended it to 48-44 after a Jeremy Campbell layup at the 7:24 mark.
UTSA answered with a 5-0 run capped by a 3-pointer from the left wing by junior Melvin Johnson III — his first points of the night — to take a one-point edge with 5:39 remaining.
Onochie Ochie knotted the score at 49 after making 1-of-2 at the free-throw line on the next possession and, after a 1:40 scoreless stretch by both teams, UTSA began to seize control.
DeShawn Patterson was whistled for a technical foul, also his fifth personal, with 3:20 to play and Johnson III made both freebies to give UTSA a 51-49 lead. Johnson III missed a chance to pad the lead after he was unable to convert two more free throws following a technical on the Lions bench.
Junior Kannon Burrage connected on a layup with 2:26 left to put the Roadrunners up by four, but Campbell quickly responded with a short jumper at the other end to make it 53-51. However, Nujic drew a charge on the play after the shot left Campbell’s hand and he made a pair at the line to push the lead back to four with two minutes remaining.
Hale III then came up with a key steal in the backcourt on the inbounds pass and converted a layup to hand UTSA a 57-51 advantage.
The Roadrunners were able to hold Southeastern without a field goal for the remainder of the game and Nujic added a late layup to provide the final eight-point margin.
“We were fortunate to win tonight, to be perfectly honest,” said head coach Brooks Thompson, a former SLU assistant coach in 2000-01. “We got a few breaks late in the game, but Southeastern did a great job. They are a very well-coached team. That game could have easily gone the other way.”
UTSA overcame an uncharacteristic poor shooting night from long distance, as it made just 2-of-11 (18.2 percent). The Roadrunners were 19-of-45 (42.2 percent) from the floor overall and converted 19-of-27 (70.4 percent) at the line. They also forced 23 Lions turnovers to help offset 24 SLU points off 19 UTSA miscues.
Meanwhile, the Lions shot just 37.7 percent (20-of-53), including 4-of-20 (20 percent) from downtown, and they struggled to make only 7-of-15 (46.7 percent) at the free-throw line.
Campbell led Southeastern Louisiana with 10 points, while Donovon Ross matched Hill with a game-best seven rebounds.
UTSA hosts Stephen F. Austin (13-10, 7-3 SLC) at 4 p.m. on Saturday. The game will be televised on Time Warner Cable’s Texas Channel.