| March 7, 2005 |
March Madness returns to campus as UTSA hosts Lamar Tuesday
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SAN ANTONIO - Hoping for a second straight trip to the NCAA Tournament, the UTSA men's basketball team will be looking to take its first step on Tuesday, March 8 at 7 p.m. in the Convocation Center when they host the Lamar Cardinals in the first round of the O'Reilly Auto Parts/Southland Conference Tournament.
Tickets priced at $10 are on sale now at the UTSA Ticket Office. For ticket information please call 458-UTSA.
UTSA, the No. 4 seed in the Tournament, ended the regular season with an overall record of 15-12, 10-6 in Southland Conference play. The Roadrunners have won three straight games and five of their last six entering this important week.
Named second team all-Southland Conference on Monday, senior John Millsap leads the Roadrunners in scoring (13.5 ppg) and rebounding (6.8 rpg) entering Tuesday's game with No. 5 seed Lamar, a team that UTSA has had a hard time with this season. The Cardinals, 17-10 and 9-7, swept the season series from the Roadrunners, winning 85-68 on Feb. 5 in Beaumont, and 88-83 on Feb. 23 in San Antonio.
If UTSA can win on Tuesday, the Roadrunners would advance to Thursday's 7 p.m. semifinal round game at home sites of the highest remaining seeds. The championship game, which will also be televised by ESPN2, will be played on Sunday, March 13 at 1 p.m. at the home of the highest remaining seed.
Northwestern State enters the Tournament as the No. 1 seed, followed by No. 2 seed Southeastern Louisiana, No. 3 seed Sam Houston State and then UTSA.
O'Reilly Auto Parts/Southland Conference Tournament
No. 4-seed UTSA Roadrunners (15-12)
vs.
No. 5-seed Lamar Cardinals (17-10)
Tuesday, March 8 • 7 p.m.
Convocation Center • San Antonio, Texas
Radio: KKYX 680 AM/goUTSA.com
ROADRUNNERS GAME FACTS
Opponent:
Lamar Cardinals (17-10/9-7)
Series History:
UTSA trails in the all-time series by a 12-10 count after suffering two losses during the regular season to Lamar. The Cardinals won in Beaumont by an 85-68 count on Feb. 5, and won in San Antonio 88-83 on Feb. 23. The two teams have played once before in the SLC Tournament, with UTSA prevailing 77-63 in 1999.
Roadrunner Streaks:
Win/Loss Streak: Won three
Road Streak: Won two
Neutral Court Streak: Lost three
Home Streak: Won two
Last Game:
UTSA closed out the regular season on March 4 with an 81-76 win at Texas State that claimed the No. 4 seed position for the Roadrunners in the upcoming O'Reilly Auto Parts/Southland Conference Tournament. Justin Harbert led five players in double figures with 19 points, hitting on five 3-point field goals.
Radio/TV:
All UTSA games this season can be heard live in San Antonio and South Texas on the Roadrunner Radio Network (KKYX Radio 680 AM and www.goUTSA.com) beginning 15 minutes prior to tipoff.
Coach Carter:
Tim Carter is in his 10th season at UTSA and has a career record of 149-134 (.529) with the Roadrunners and 160-150 (.518) overall . . . He is the winningest men's basketball coach in UTSA history and has the longest tenure . . . He scored his 100th career win on Dec. 1, 2001 over Illinois State and his 100th win at UTSA on Feb. 4, 2002 at Texas-Arlington . . . Carter was named the 1999 SLC "Coach of the Year" . . . He came to UTSA after one season at Nebraska-Omaha. He has served as an assistant coach at Oklahoma (1984), Midwestern State (1984-86), Houston (1986-87), Oklahoma State (1987-90) and Northwestern (1990-94) . . . He has led UTSA to the NCAA Tournament in 1999 and 2004.
The Matchup:
With two wins already this season, Lamar leads the all-time series by a 12-10 count. This season the Cardinals won in Beaumont by an 85-68 count on Feb. 5, and prevailed in San Antonio by an 88-83 margin on Feb. 23 (see boxscores on page 12). In the two games, UTSA shot a combined 39.2% from the floor, while the Cardinals connected on 42.8% of their shots. Justin Harbert led UTSA with an 18.0 points per game average for the two games. UTSA is 6-5 all-time versus Lamar at home. The Roadrunners are 1-0 versus the Cardinals at the SLC Tournament, winning 77-63 in 1999, en route to the SLC Tournament title.
Carter versus Lamar:
Tim Carter has an all-time record of 10-4 in games versus Lamar.
Home Sweet Home:
Tough to beat in the UTSA Convocation Center, the Roadrunners have an all-time home record of 219-89 (.721) in the Bird Cage. UTSA is 1-1 all-time as a home team at the Alamodome.
Working Overtime:
UTSA enters the 2004-05 season with a reputation as a team that is tough to beat in overtime. The Roadrunners are 1-0 this season and 13-7 all-time in extra sessions under coach Tim Carter. UTSA won 10 of the last 11 overtime games.
367 and Counting:
The UTSA men's basketball program now has 367 wins. The Roadrunners have averaged 15.3 wins a season as a program over the first 23 years, and are the winningest program in the SLC over the past nine years.
Banging The Boards:
UTSA has been a beast on the boards through 27 games this season, and have been outrebounded by only six opponents -- Texas, Northwestern State (twice), Texas-Pan American, Lamar and Southeastern Louisiana. The Roadrunners average 41.6 rebounds per game, which is tops in the SLC, to only 36.7 for their opponents. UTSA pulled down 61 rebounds in the home loss to Lamar, which was only two shy of a school record.
Balanced Attack:
In 18 of 27 games this season, UTSA has had four-or-more players scoring in double figures and is 13-5 in those games. The Roadrunners have three games with five players scoring in double figures and is 3-0 in those games.
Injury Report:
Freshman Roderick Rodgers is sidelined with a partially torn tendon in his left foot and will be sidelined for the remainder of the 2004-05 season.
UTSA In The Sagarin:
According to the Sagarin College Basketball Rankings, UTSA has played the 235th toughest schedule of all NCAA Division I schools after the game with Texas State. UTSA is currently ranked No. 189 overall.
Dunk-O-Meter:
Dunks by UTSA players this season: Ray Selvage - 28 . . . John Millsap - 17 . . . Anthony Fuqua - 13 . . . Andre Owens - 1 . . . Adam McCoy - 1 . . . Kurt Attaway - 1.
Double-Double-O-Meter:
UTSA players who have posted double-double's this season: John Millsap - 4 . . . Anthony Fuqua - 3 . . . Ray Selvage - 2 . . . Andre Owens - 1.
Mr. Steady:
All-Conference senior forward John Millsap currently leads the team in scoring (13.5 ppg), rebounding (6.8 rpg) and is second in double figure scoring games (19). He is the only Roadrunners player to start all 27 games this season.
Super Sub:
Senior guard Rapheal Posey continues to be a spark off of the bench for UTSA, averaging 13.2 points per game in conference play, all in a reserve role. He has scored in double figures 20 times, with UTSA going 14-6 in those games.
Sign 'Em Up:
Four players have signed national letters of intent to play for the Roadrunners next season. The signees include three incoming freshmen and a junior college transfer. Signing with UTSA are 6-6 forward Kyile Byrd from Lon Morris (Texas) Junior College; 6-1 guard Tim Maiden and 6-9 center Nkem Ojougboh from Scottsdale (Ariz.) Christian Academy; and 6-4 guard Eric Young from Eisenhower High School in Houston, Texas.
UTSA's Tournament History:
UTSA has won three Tournament titles, claiming the 1988 Trans America Athletic Conference championship, and Southland Conference Tournament titles in 1999 and 2004. The Roadrunners have a record of 12-10 (.545) in SLC Tournament games and have won three straight games. UTSA was the runner-up in 1992 and 1993. The Roadrunners have advanced to the SLC Tournament in all but two years (1997 and 2003) after joining the league for the 1991-92 season. The Roadrunners are 5-2 in SLC Tournament games played at the Convocation Center.
O'Reilly Auto Parts/Southland Conference Tournament:
If the Roadrunners win Tuesday's game with Lamar, UTSA will advance to the semifinal round of the O'Reilly Auto Parts/Southland Conference Tournament with the game to be played on Thursday, March 10 at 7 p.m. at home sites of the highest remaining seeds. The Championship game is set for Sunday, March 13 at 1 p.m. at the highest remaining seed.