UTSA Roadrunners (3-3) at Texas-Pan American Broncs (3-7)
Thursday, Dec. 18 ? 7 p.m.
UTPA Fieldhouse ? Edinburg, Texas
Series History: UTSA leads, 8-7
Last Meeting: Texas-Pan American, 71-63 (Jan. 8, 2008)
Opening Tip: Following a 78-75 victory at Rice on Dec. 4 and a two-week layoff, UTSA (3-3) will play its third of four straight games on the road when it travels to Edinburg, Texas, to face Texas-Pan American (3-7) on Thursday, Dec. 18. Tip is slated for 7 p.m. at UTPA Fieldhouse.
Tuning In: The game will air live in the San Antonio area on 92.5 FM The Outlawbeginning with the pregame show at 6:45 p.m. Andy Everett has the call.Free live audio will be available online at the "Multimedia" link at goUTSA.com or sports.yahoo.com.
Fast Break Points:
? UTSA and Texas-Pan American are meeting for the sixth straight season
? The Roadrunners lead the all-time series, 8-7, but UTPA has won the last three meetings
? The two teams will meet twice in the same season (Jan. 21) for the sixth time in the all-time series
? With its 78-75 victory at Rice on Dec. 4, UTSA snapped a 23-game non-conference road losing streak that dated back to Dec. 13, 2003 (53-45 at Baylor)
? The Roadrunners have won four of their last eight road games
? The Roadrunners have drained nine or more 3-pointers in all six games this season and they lead the Southland Conference and rank second nationally in threes per game (11.7)
? UTSA also leads the league and ranks second in the NCAA in steals per game (12.0) and is tops in the SLC and seventh nationally in turnover margin (+7.5)
? Now in its 28th season of basketball, UTSA registered victory No. 400 for the program with an 80-55 victory against McMurry on Nov. 25
? In the 136-68 victory against East Central on Nov. 22, the Roadrunners set school records for points in a game (136), margin of victory (68), 3-pointers (17), rebounds (65), field goal attempts (97) and 3-point field goal attempts (43)
? In its three wins, UTSA has an average margin of victory of 32 points
UTSA/Texas-Pan American Series History: UTSA leads the all-time series against Texas-Pan American, 8-7. The Roadrunners own a 4-3 edge in games played in Edinburg, but the last victory was a 96-67 decision on Dec. 18, 1997. The Broncs have won five of the last six meetings, including three straight at UTPA Fieldhouse. The two teams are meeting twice in the same season (next game on Jan. 21) for the sixth time in the all-time series.
Scouting UTPA: The Broncs fell to 3-7 on the year with a 71-50 loss at Air Force last Saturday. Texas-Pan American is in its first year of membership in the Great West Conference, but a league championship in basketball will not be contested until next season. UTPA’s three victories came against Sul Ross State (84-59), Colorado State-Colorado Springs (87-78) and North Carolina Central (56-50). Senior forward Emmanuel Jones leads the team in scoring (17.5 ppg) and rebounding (8.5 rpg), while sophomore guard Nick Weiermiller averages 10.1 points and 5.6 assists per game. Head coach Tom Schuberth is 35-35 in his third season at the helm.
Last Meeting: Travis Gabbidon poured in a career-high 31 points, but Paul Stoll scored 20 to help lead Texas-Pan American to a 71-63 victory over UTSA on Jan. 8, 2008, at UTPA Fieldhouse. Gabbidon drained five 3-pointers and was 12-of-20 from the floor overall to lead all players with the most points scored by a Roadrunner in the Brooks Thompson era and the first 30-point game since LeRoy Hurd tallied 31 against Northwestern State on Jan. 24, 2004. The Phoenix, Ariz., native also pulled down a game-high nine rebounds and posted three steals in 33 minutes of action. Joey Shank added nine points and shared the team high of five assists with Isaiah Allen. UTSA, playing without the services of freshman point guard Devin Gibson (concussion), shot 49 percent from the field for the game, including 55.6 percent in the second half, and posted 18 assists against 15 turnovers.
Last Time Out: Senior Joey Shank and junior Omar Johnson combined to go 12-of-14 from behind the 3-point arc and UTSA held off Rice, 78-75, to snap a 23-game non-conference losing streak in road contests on Dec. 4 at Tudor Fieldhouse. Shank drained 7-of-9 from beyond the arc and 8-of-10 from the floor overall en route to tying his career high with 26 points, while Johnson was a perfect 5-for-5 from downtown in scoring a season-high 21 points. Sophomore Devin Gibson added 13 points and six steals, one shy of the reigning NCAA thefts champion’s career high posted last season against Navy. UTSA recorded 11 steals as a team and forced 19 Rice turnovers, converting those into 22 points. A large contingent of UTSA fans made the three-hour trek to the Bayou City to watch UTSA score its first victory in a true non-conference road game since Dec. 13, 2003, when the Roadrunners beat Baylor, 53-45.
Road Warriors: The Roadrunners have played four of their first six games on the road and eventually will be away from the Convocation Center for seven of their first 10 contests. UTSA travels to Texas-Pan American on Dec. 18, UMKC on Dec. 22 and SMU on Dec. 29, with one home contest against Georgia State on Dec. 27. Dating back to last February, UTSA is 4-4 in its past eight true road games.
Victory No. 400: UTSA claimed victory No. 400 for the program with an 80-55 decision against McMurry on Nov. 25. The Roadrunners own an all-time record of 401-373 (.518) in now their 28th season.
Record-Setting Night: UTSA set six school records in the 136-68 victory against East Central on Nov. 22, as the Roadrunners improved to 24-4 all-time and 3-0 under third-year head coach Brooks Thompson in home openers. Following is a list of the broken records:
Points: 136 [132, vs. Texas State (11/24/90)]
Winning Margin: 68 [58, vs. Georgia State (2/10/90)]
Field Goal Attempts: 97 [91, vs. Georgia State (1/22/87)]
Rebounds: 65 [64, vs. Jarvis Christian (11/29/86)]
3-Pointers: 17 [17, vs. Stephen F. Austin (1/18/97)]
3-Point Field Goal Attempts: 43 [37. vs. Northwestern State (1/19/08)]
Additionally, UTSA set Southland Conference season highs for points, margin of victory, field goals (51), field goal attempts, 3-point field goals, 3-point field goal attempts, rebounds and assists (29) in that contest.
Creating Havoc: The Roadrunners are forcing their opponents into an average of 22.3 turnovers per game this season. The last four teams ? East Central, McMurry, Navy and Rice ? have turned the ball over 108 times combined (27.0 tpg). A large reason for UTSA’s success in creating opponent miscues is the fact that the team is coming up with a league-best 12.0 steals per contest (second/NCAA). Led by 2007-08 NCAA steals champion Devin Gibson, a sophomore who is averaging 3.5 thefts per game despite going steal-less against Oklahoma State and Navy, 10 different Roadrunners have teamed up to record 61 steals this year. That number includes 58 in the past four games (14.5 spg), led by a Brooks Thompson era best of 20 against East Central on Nov. 22.
Hitting The Trifecta: The Roadrunners have been productive from beyond the 3-point line through the first six games this season. Even with the arc moved one foot further from the basket this year, UTSA has shown it still can fill it up from downtown. Led by senior Joey Shank (20) and junior Omar Johnson (19), the Roadrunners have drained 70 threes for a conference-leading 11.7 per-game average (second/NCAA), as nine different Roadrunners have contributed from behind the arc this season. UTSA has made at least one 3-pointer in all 65 games under third-year head coach Brooks Thompson, including five or more 40 times. UTSA had made at least one three in 425 consecutive contests dating back to Jan. 5, 1994 (vs. Texas).
More Free Throws The Key: The Roadrunners are 3-0 when they attempt more free throws than their opponents this season. In the three victories, UTSA has attempted 68 freebies compared to just 43 by East Central, McMurry and Rice combined. The Roadrunners are shooting 64.5 percent from the charity stripe on the season, despite making only 61.8 percent in the wins. UTSA has made 42 free throws in the three wins and 28 in the three losses, as opposed to 27 and 57 made, respectively, by its opponents.
Balanced Attack: Led by junior Omar Johnson (15.7) and seniors Travis Gabbidon (11.8) and Joey Shank (12.7), UTSA has displayed a balanced scoring attack through the first six games this season. Five other Roadrunners are averaging at least 4.5 points per contest: Juniors Morris Smith IV (7.2), Josh Bonney (6.7), Chris Allen (4.8) and Terry Fields (4.5) and sophomore Devin Gibson (9.2).
Gibson Up For Cousy Award: Sophomore Devin Gibson, the 2007-08 Southland Conference Freshman of the Year, has been named a preseason nominee for the Bob Cousy Award, given annually to the nation’s top point guard. The Cy-Falls High product is one of two SLC players (Kenny Dawkins, Lamar) and one of 31 nationally named to the watch list. Gibson, the 2007-08 NCAA steals leader (3.3 spg), is averaging 9.2 points, 2.8 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 3.5 steals (3rd/NCAA) per game this season.
Moving On Up: Sophomore Devin Gibson is making his way up a pair of UTSA career charts. The Houston native currently has 114 steals in just 34 career games (3.4 spg), which places him ninth on the all-time list and just two behind Thaddeus Wordlaw for eighth. Gibson also has tallied 451 points, ranking him 49th. He is on pace to appear on the school’s top-10 career lists for free throws (176, 10th=211), free throw percentage (.707, needs 200 made) and assists (164, 10th=214) this season.
More Preseason Accolades: In addition to making the Cousy Award preseason list, Gibson also has been named preseason first-team all-conference and a CollegeHoops.net Preseason Mid-Major All-American.
Welcome Back: Senior Travis Gabbidon and junior Omar Johnson both were plagued with injuries last season, but have emerged as the team’s top two scorers through the first five games this year. Gabbidon, a Phoenix native and JUCO All-American at College of Southern Idaho, was UTSA’s leading scorer (13.9) and rebounder (5.8) until he went down with a season-ending injury at Lamar on Jan. 12. That happened one game after he scored 31 ? the program’s first 30-point outing since 2003 ? and grabbed nine boards against Texas-Pan American. Gabbidon is averaging 11.8 points and 4.3 rebounds per game this season. Johnson, a Philadelphia native and JUCO All-American at Barton County, missed all of last season with a stress reaction, but has made an immediate impact in his first six contests. He leads the team in scoring at 15.7 points per game behind 19-of-37 (51.4 percent) shooting from beyond the 3-point line and has dished out a team-best 27 assists (4.5 avg).
Pinpoint Accuracy: Junior Omar Johnson has displayed pinpoint accuracy from behind the 3-point line in his first six games with the Roadrunners. The Simon Gratz High product has connected on 19-of-37 from downtown, or 51.4 percent. He ranks eighth in the Southland Conference in scoring, fourth in the league and 12th in the NCAA in 3-point field goal percentage and seventh in the SLC in 3-pointers made per game (3.2).
No Shank Shots: Senior Joey Shank has been a consistent threat from behind the arc in his 34 games with the Roadrunners. Last year, the Folsom, Calif., native drained 67 threes, the sixth-best season in school history, and made three or more in a game 11 times. He put his name next to the program’s single-game record with eight treys in a win over Northwestern State last January and he nearly matched that effort with seven against Rice on Dec. 4 of this season, tallying a career-best 26 points in both contests. Shank, who has made six or more trifectas in five career games, has connected on 20-of-43 (46.5 percent) 3-pointers this year. He ranks fifth in the Southland Conference in 3-pointers made per game (3.3), ninth in 3-point field goal percentage and 17th in scoring (12.7 ppg).
Model Of Consistency: Senior Travis Gabbidon has been one of UTSA’s most consistent players in his two-year career. In his 20 games with the Roadrunners, the Phoenix native has reached double figures in scoring 17 times, including a career-best 31 against Texas-Pan American last January. He also has grabbed five or more rebounds 10 times, including a high of 14 against Texas Wesleyan last December.
SLC Preseason Polls: UTSA has been picked to finish third in the West Division of the Southland Conference by the league’s sports information directors and fourth by the head coaches in the preseason polls. The Roadrunners received two first-place votes and 43 points in the SIDs poll to rank behind UT Arlington and Lamar, while they tallied 39 points for fourth behind UT Arlington, Lamar and Sam Houston State in the coaches poll. Stephen F. Austin is the unanimous choice to win the East.
Up Next: UTSA will travel to Kansas City to take on UMKC on Monday, Dec. 22.
