· Game notes (.pdf)
SAN ANTONIO — UTSA returns home to host a key Southland Conference game against Stephen F. Austin on Saturday, Feb. 3. Tip is set for 6 p.m. at the Convocation Center.
UTSA Roadrunners (5-15, 1-6) vs. Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks (13-7, 6-2)
Saturday, Feb. 3 • 6 p.m.
Convocation Center (4,500) • San Antonio, Texas
Audio: KKYX-680 AM/goUTSA.com
Video: goUTSA.com
Series Record: UTSA leads, 19-9
Last Meeting: UTSA 71, Stephen F. Austin 68 (Feb. 23, 2006)
Tuning In: The game will be aired live in the San Antonio listening area on KKYX-680 AM and will be available online at goUTSA.com. Jason Minnix (play-by-play) and Edward Endicott (color commentary) will call the action beginning with the pregame show at 5:45 p.m.
Last Time Out: Junior Andrew Francis and sophomore Aldric Reynolds scored 14 points apiece to lead four Roadrunners in double figures, but Aaron Wade drained all five of his 3-point attempts en route to a game-high 20 points to lead Sam Houston State past UTSA, 76-64, on Thursday night at Johnson Coliseum. Junior Keith Spencer added 13 points and joined Francis with a team-high five rebounds. Meanwhile, junior Melvin Smith pitched in 10 points, his 15th double-digit outing of the year, and senior Kurt Attaway dished out a game-high nine assists to go along with seven points. Wade was nearly perfect from the field, helping the Bearkats shoot 47.6 percent (10-21) from downtown. C.J Hadley (12) and Jejuan Plair (10) also reached double figures, while Ryan Bright pulled down a game-high nine boards. The Roadrunners had the hot hand early, draining their first five field goals in building a 10-2 lead. UTSA still held a 12-4 advantage until the Bearkats began the 3-point barrage. A McDaniel trey from the right wing gave Sam Houston its first lead, 19-18, with 8:12 left in the half. Sam Houston State used a 7-0 run to start the second half and eventually built 63-40 lead with just under 10 minutes to play. UTSA made things interesting late, as Spencer converted two straight baskets to pull the Roadrunners to within 65-52 with 5:32 remaining. Reynolds drained a trey from the left corner to make it a 12-point game, but Wade made his fifth of the night with 4:12 to play to push the lead back to 15. Reynolds sank another 3-pointer from the left wing to make it 70-58 with 3:42 to play, but Plair converted a 3-point play at the other end to help seal it. UTSA nearly matched its best shooting performance of the season (55.3 percent), making 25 of its 46 field goals attempts for 54.3 percent.
UTSA/SFA Series History: UTSA leads the all-time series with Stephen F. Austin, 19-9, and has won the last four meetings, including both last season. The last four have been decided by an average of 5.0 points. The Roadrunners are 13-2 all-time against the Lumberjacks in the Convocation Center with the only losses coming in 1997 (111-105 OT) and 2003 (77-66).
Series Notes:
• This will be the 30th meeting between UTSA and Stephen F. Austin
• UTSA leads the series, 19-9
• The Roadrunners have won the last four meetings
• UTSA is 13-2 against SFA in the Convocation Center and has won three straight against the Lumberjacks in the building
• The Roadrunners downed SFA, 74-70, in the 2004 SLC Tournament Championship Game before a live audience on ESPN2
Scouting the Lumberjacks: Stephen F. Austin is 13-7 overall and in a tie for second place at 6-2 in the Southland Conference West Division. The Lumberjacks have won eight of their last 10 games, including three straight on the road. Sophomore forward Josh Alexander and sophomore center Matt Kingsley lead the team in scoring at 13.3 points per game apiece, while senior center Antuane Miller is posting 11.6 points per contest. Alexander is the team’s leading rebounder (5.0 rpg), while junior point guard Gerald Fonzie has a team-best 49 assists. The Lumberjacks average 69.7 points per game and are shooting 47.8 percent from the field as a team. Head coach Dany Kaspar is 106-83 in his seventh season at the helm.
Last Meeting: Kurt Attaway drained a 3-pointer from the left corner with 3.4 seconds left to give UTSA a 71-68 victory over Stephen F. Austin on Feb. 23, 2006, at the Convocation Center. The Roadrunners led for most of the second half until Marcus Clark hit 1-of-2 free throws with 12 seconds left to knot the score at 68-all. Freshman Aldric Reynolds drove the right baseline and dished the ball cross court to Attaway, who poured in the high-arcing trey from right in front of the UTSA student section to give UTSA the lead for good. Attaway scored 10 points on the evening, one of three players in double figures. Andre Owens recorded his third double-double of the year with 22 points and a career-high 10 assists to go along with six rebounds and a career-best six steals. Abe Donlon added 16 points and nine rebounds. Josh Alexander led SFA with 22 points while Antuane Miller chipped in 16 points and eight rebounds. Following a tight first half, UTSA took a 44-37 lead on an Owens follow with just over 12 minutes to play. SFA fought back to within four, but an Owens 3-pointer gave UTSA a 55-48 lead with 5:16 remaining. Owens converted a fast break lay-up at the 4:18 mark to give the Roadrunners their largest lead, 59-50. Clark drained his first basket of the night at the 3:03 mark to pull SFA to within six, 63-57, and Alexander converted a 3-point play with 1:31 left to bring the Jacks to within 65-64. Attaway answered with a long 3-pointer from the right wing with one minute left, but Keith Hardaway converted a lay-up and free throw just eight seconds later to make it 68-67. A steal by Miller gave SFA the ball with 15 seconds left and a foul on Owens, his fifth, put Clark at the line for two freebies. Clark made the first but the second rimmed out to give UTSA the last shot. That set up Attaway’s heroics as he made just his 11th 3-pointer of the season to give the Roadrunners the dramatic win. UTSA shot 56 percent from the field for the game (28-of-50), including seven 3-pointers, and held SFA to 43.1 percent (25-of-58).
Tough Slate: UTSA has faced one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the program’s recent history. The Roadrunners played three teams ranked in the top 50 of the latest Sagarin Ratings Index — Washington State (19), Oklahoma State (24) and Gonzaga (42). In the two major polls, Oklahoma State also is currently ranked No. 14 in the USA Today/ESPN Coaches Poll, while Washington State is No. 17 this week. In the Associated Press Top 25, Oklahoma State is 12th and Washington State is 18th.
Tough At Home: The UTSA Convocation Center has been a tough place for opponents to play. The Roadrunners own an all-time record of 231-101 (.696) in the facility dating back to the inaugural 1981-82 season.
Record-Setting Defense: UTSA broke a pair of school records in back-to-back games earlier this season. In a 64-49 victory against San Diego on Nov. 26, the Roadrunners limited the Toreros to 13-of-53 shooting from the floor, or 24.5 percent, which broke the school record for lowest field goal percentage by an opponent previously held by Howard Payne (26.9%) in 1988. One game later, UTSA held Henderson State to 36 points, breaking the previous fewest-points record of 42 set by Texas State in 1996. UTSA currently ranks third in the league in scoring defense, giving up 65.5 points per game.
Francis Fits Right In: Junior Andrew Francis, a transfer from Houston who sat out the fall semester per NCAA transfer rules, has had an immediate impact in his first seven games in a Roadrunners uniform. The Alief Elsik High School product is averaging 11.3 points and a team-high 7.3 rebounds per game, and has led UTSA in scoring three times and rebounding eight times. A strong candidate for SLC Newcomer of the Year, he has turned in a pair of double-doubles with 16 points and 14 rebounds against Northwestern State and 12 points and 10 boards at Texas State. In conference play, Francis is ranks fifth in the league with 8.1 rebounds per contest and stands 12th in scoring at 13.3 points per game.
Smith Stepping Up: Junior guard Melvin Smith has stepped up his game and developed into a solid mid-range shooter. The Covington, Tenn., native has scored in double digits in 15 of the last 16 contests, including a season-high 25 in the 64-60 victory over Texas Wesleyan on Dec. 9. Dating back to the Cal State Fullerton win on Nov. 22, Smith is averaging 14.8 points per game and is shooting 47.5 percent (96-202) from the floor. The Dodge City (Kan.) Community College transfer leads the team in scoring (13.4 ppg), field goals made (110) and minutes played (33.2 mpg) and has been the leading scorer for the Roadrunners nine times this season. In SLC action, Smith’s 14.0 scoring average is good for 10th among league leaders.
That A Way, Attaway: Senior Kurt Attaway has relished in his role as the team’s floor general this season. Through 20 games (all starts), Attaway is averaging a career-best 7.2 points per game and has dished out a team-high 84 assists compared to only 46 turnovers. He also has a team-best 34 steals and is shooting 73.5 percent (36-49) from the free throw line. Attaway ranks fourth in the SLC in assists (4.20 apg) and fifth in steals (1.70).
Career Record Watch: With 98 games under his belt, Kurt Attaway has moved onto several of UTSA’s career lists. The Flower Mound native posted a career-high 12 assists in the Cal State Fullerton loss on Nov. 22, breaking his previous mark of eight with nine in the first half. He moved past Jon Havens into fifth place on UTSA’s career chart with 10 assists at TCU on Dec. 27. With 335 career dimes, he is on pace to catch David President (339) this week. He also is seventh with 136 steals, eight behind Preston Ivory for sixth (144), and is 37th with 258 rebounds, four behind Rob Wallace (262). Attaway has scored 596 points in his career, which ranks 36th all time. The 2003-04 Southland Conference (SLC) Freshman of the Year needs five points to surpass President (597).
Model Student-Athlete: Not only does Kurt Attaway excel on the court, he does in the classroom, as well. The senior has been named the SLC Men’s Basketball Student-Athlete of the Year each of the past two seasons and was twice voted UTSA’s Male Student-Athlete of the Year. He carries a perfect 4.0 grade point average in psychology and recently was named an honorable mention candidate for the John Wooden Citizenship Cup Award.
Wiping The Glass: Junior Keith Spencer has quickly established himself as a force on the glass in his first season with the Roadrunners. Through the first 20 games, the San Diego, Calif., native has pulled down a team-high 138 rebounds and is averaging 6.9 boards per contest, good for eighth in the SLC. He posted a pair of double-doubles in the first month of the season (11/12 at Washington State on Nov. 17 and 16/11 vs. Cal State Fullerton on Nov. 22) and added his third with 10 points and 11 boards in the loss at No. 13 Oklahoma State (12/30). Spencer, who also is shooting a team-high 61.5 percent (4th/SLC) from the floor this season, has reached double-digit rebounds five times this year. He grabbed a season-best 12 boards at Washington State and has led the Roadrunners in rebounding in 10 games this season.
Just Call Me “Duke”: Junior Isaiah “Duke” Allen opened his debut season with the Roadrunners in style, leading the team in scoring in four of the first five games. He poured in 22 in the loss at Gonzaga, and has reached double figures in scoring 11 times. Allen posted a season-high 25 points, draining 6-of-8 3-pointers in the 72-64 victory over UTA on Jan. 22. He followed that with 17 points — including three treys — in the loss to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Jan. 27. Allen leads the team with 35 3-pointers and a 75.9-percent (44-58) free throw percentage and ranks third in scoring (11.2 ppg).
Improvement At The Line: After getting off to a tough start at the free throw line to start the season, UTSA has shown drastic improvement over the last month. The Roadrunners were shooting just 57.2 percent from the line entering conference play, but have converted 61.3 percent in SLC action. UTSA is shooting 77.1 percent (37-48) over the past three games.
Forecasting 400: In its 26th year, UTSA owns an all-time record of 383-346 (.525), including nine seasons of 17 or more victories, the last coming in 2003-04 (19-14).
Roster Changes: UTSA announced the first week of January that junior transfer Travis Gabbidon, a 6-7 forward from College of Southern Idaho, will take a redshirt this season to recover from a foot injury. Also, junior guard James Peters (San Antonio/Clark HS) and sophomore guard Tim Maiden (Scottsdale, Ariz./Christian Academy) have left the team for personal reasons.
Fall Signing Class: UTSA signed Matt DeWaal (Compton, Calif./Dominguez HS), Devin Gibson (Houston/Cypress Falls HS), Kevin Jackson (Irving/Hill College) and Joey Shank (Folsom, Calif./American River College) to National Letters of Intent during the fall signing period in November.
Up Next: UTSA stays home to host Southeastern Louisiana and Nicholls State next Thursday, Feb. 8, and Saturday, Feb. 10, at the Convocation Center.
