| Senior Travis Gabbidon scored a season-high 20 points on the strength of a school-record 10-for-10 performance from the free throw line on Saturday. |
SAN ANTONIO ? Senior Travis Gabbidon and junior Omar Johnson combined for 39 points and UTSA outscored Colgate by a dozen in the second half in a 76-66 victory on Friday night at the Convocation Center.
Gabbidon posted a season-high 20 points, including a school-record 10-for-10 performance from the free throw line, while Johnson poured in 19 behind 6-of-8 shooting from the floor.
The duo helped the Roadrunners overcome a 10-point first-half deficit and run their record to 7-4 overall and a perfect 4-0 at home this season. UTSA also extended its winning streak to four games, matching a four-game stretch from Feb. 8-23 of last season, the longest win streak since the 2003-04 squad won seven in a row.
“It took us a while to wake up, but we played well once we did,” said third-year head coach Brooks Thompson, who improved to 13-3 in non-conference home games. “We started making plays on offense and making stops on defense, and I think only turning the ball over four times in the second half helped play a big part in getting this win.”
Junior Demarco Stepter nearly turned in his fourth double-double of the year with eight points and a game-high 11 rebounds, while sophomore Devin Gibson registered 10 points behind a 6-of-7 night at the charity stripe, five assists, five steals and four boards.
Gabbidon and Gibson’s free throw show helped UTSA go 22-of-28 from the line for 78.6 percent, the second-best outing of the season (83.3%, 10-12 vs. Iowa).
UTSA trailed by as many as 10 points in the first half, but it cut what was a 26-16 Colgate lead to two points at the half, as a Gabbidon three from the right wing at the buzzer made it 34-32.
The Roadrunners got 15 points from their bench in the half (25 for the game) but shot just 37.5 percent from the floor and were 4-of-13 (30.8%) from behind the arc. The Raiders made 4-of-9 3-pointers and shot 42.9 percent overall.
Gabbidon opened the second half with a short jumper to tie the score for the first time. He then knocked down a long three from the wing to give UTSA its first lead, 39-36, at the 17:10 mark.
It was an eventual 12-4 run through the first seven minutes of the second half that helped UTSA build its lead to 44-38.
Johnson knocked down a pair of threes and had a steal of an inbounds pass and easy layup to help the lead grow to 52-40 midway through the second half. Junior Morris Smith IV knocked down his third trey at the 9:50 mark to cap a 25-8 run and give the Roadrunners a 15-point advantage.
Ben Jonson and Anthony Hill drained 3-pointers to pull Colgate to within 63-57 with just under six minutes remaining. Nick Pascale then converted a 3-point play to make it a three-point game, but Gibson pushed the lead back to double digits with a 3-point play with three minutes left on the clock.
Alex Woodhouse followed a Willie Morse miss with a slam dunk follow to pull the Raiders within 70-64 with 45 seconds remaining, but UTSA was a perfect 6-of-6 from the charity stripe from there to help seal the victory.
UTSA made 12-of-13 free throws in the second half and turned nine Raiders turnovers into 13 points.
Morse led Colgate (3-9) with 15 points on the strength of four 3-pointers, while Jonson added 13 points and eight rebounds.
The Roadrunners host Texas Wesleyan on Monday, Jan. 5. Tip is set for 8 p.m. or 30 minutes following the conclusion of the women’s 6 p.m. game against Tulsa.