Dec. 20, 2005
Contact: Rick Nixon (210) 458-4551
New Mexico State holds off UTSA, 74-72
Box Score
LAS CRUCES, N.M. - New Mexico State's Tyrone Nelson scored 31 points and pulled down 16 rebounds as the Aggies held on for a 74-72 victory over the UTSA Roadrunners at the Pan American Center.
UTSA, which fell to 3-5 with the loss, was led by Andre Owens (Irving, Texas) with 28 points, while Chris Thompson (Austin, Texas) added 17.
New Mexico State, 4-6, placed three players in double figures as Supo Jegede added 11 and Shaun Davis, 10.
After trailing by as many as 11 points in the second half, UTSA rallied to take a 62-61 lead after two Owens free throws with 6:13 remaining.
Behind Nelson, the Aggies rallied with a 7-2 run and led 68-64 with 3:15 to play after a Nelson jump shot.
Trailing 71-66, UTSA's Gabe Bernard (Los Angeles, Calif.) connected on a 3-point field goal to bring the Roadrunners within 71-69 with 1:26 remaining.
After a layup by Nelson, UTSA's Kurt Attaway (Flower Mound, Texas) hit a 3-pointer with 17 seconds to play to make it 73-72 New Mexico State.
After four straight free throw misses by New Mexico State's Mike Mitchell, Nelson connected on one free throw with 3.3 seconds to play to push the lead to 74-72.
A running 3-point attempt at the buzzer by UTSA freshman Eric Young(Houston, Texas) went off the back iron as New Mexico State was able to hold on for the victory.
"I thought we gave great effort but there were a couple of hustle plays we didn't make that helped turn the game," said UTSA coach Tim Carter. "We had our chances at the end but unfortunately we couldn't control Nelson inside. He proved to be too much for us."
New Mexico State had led 38-33 at halftime as Nelson had 14 first half points.
For the game UTSA connected on 41.7 percent of its shots from the field, while New Mexico State shot 46.3%.
After the Christmas break, UTSA will return to action to play Cal State Fullerton on Dec. 27 in the first round of the Florida International Tournament. Tipoff will take place at 5 p.m. CST.