| Junior Travis Gabbidon had his first double-double as a Roadrunner on Wednesday night. |
SAN ANTONIO ? Junior Travis Gabbidon posted his first double-double of the season with 21 points and 14 rebounds to help lead UTSA past Texas Wesleyan, 70-54, on Wednesday night at the Convocation Center.
Gabbidon’s totals led all players, while senior Isaiah Allen and junior Joey Shank added 12 and 10 points, respectively, as the Roadrunners improved to 5-4 on the year and ended a three-game losing streak. Junior Antoine Dade pulled down six boards to go along with his five points and freshman Devin Gibson posted seven points and team highs of four assists and three steals.
Gary Eshon scored 13 and Dane Dmitrovic chipped in with 11 for the Rams, who fell to 7-5 on the season.
“The players did a nice job of stepping up their effort on the defensive end in the second half,” Thompson said. “It was nice to get back in the win column, especially with us going back on the road Saturday.”
After an Eshon layup to open the second half, the Roadrunners went on an 8-0 run to build a 44-32 advantage. Kennith Gober drained a jumper at the 15:29 mark for the Rams, but 3-pointers by Gabbidon, Shank and Gibson keyed an 11-2 spurt that gave UTSA a 55-36 lead.
The lead would grow to as many as 24 on a free throw by freshman Russ Permenter with 6:13 remaining. The Rams cut it to 67-52 on an Eshon trey with just under three minutes on the clock, but would get no closer.
Gabbidon had 11 of his points and seven of his boards in the first half as UTSA built a six-point advantage at the half. UTSA jumped out to a quick 11-2 lead through the first 4:32, but the Rams fought back to take their first and only lead of the game, 15-14, following a Gober 3-pointer at the 9:42 mark. The Roadrunners pushed their lead back to nine points and held a 36-30 advantage, thanks to a 17-11 edge on the glass, at the break.
UTSA held Texas Wesleyan to 16 points below its scoring average coming in and forced 19 turnovers, 10 of those steals. The Roadrunners dominated the boards, outrebounding the Rams, 41-26, for their largest margin of the season.
The Roadrunners hit the road once again to face San Diego on Saturday. Tip is set for 3 p.m. (CT) at Jenny Craig Pavilion.