UTSA Roadrunners (19-12) vs. Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks (23-7)
Sunday, March 15 ? Noon
Merrell Center (5,600) ? Katy, Texas
Series History: UTSA leads, 21-13
Last Meeting: Stephen F. Austin, 66-62 (March 7, 2009)
KATY ? No. 6 seed UTSA (19-12) will face top seed Stephen F. Austin (23-7) in the State Farm Southland Conference Tournament Championship Game at noon Sunday. It marks the first league championship game appearance for the Roadrunners since defeating the Lumberjacks, 74-70, on March 12, 2004, in San Antonio.
Tuning In: The game will be televised on ESPN2. Dave Barnett (play-by-play) and Mike Kelley (color analysis) will call the action. The game will air live in the San Antonio area on 92.5 FM The Outlaw beginning with the pregame show at 11:40 a.m. Andy Everett has the call. Additionally, SportsRadio 610 AM in Houston will carry the game live beginning at noon. Marc Vandemeer and Robert Henslee will call the action. Free live audio will be available online at goUTSA.com (courtesy of Yahoo! Sports). Live stats also will be available at goUTSA.com. Free live video will be provided online at espn360.com.
Fast Break Points:
? This will be the second meeting this season (35th overall) between UTSA and SFA and it also marks the 800th game in school history (417-382 record)
? The Roadrunners lead the series, 21-13, but the Lumberjacks have won the last four meetings including a 66-62 decision in San Antonio on March 7
? UTSA and SFA have met twice previously in the SLC Tournament; UTSA defeated SFA, 74-70, in the championship game on March 12, 2004, at the Convocation Center, while the Lumberjacks won, 71-60, on March 13, 2008
? The Roadrunners 2-0 in neutral site games and 8-9 away from the Alamo City this year
? UTSA owns a 14-11 all-time SLC Tournament record and won the 1999 and 2004 titles
? The Roadrunners are making their first appearance in the SLC Championship Game since the 2004 victory over SFA
? This marks the first time in school history and second time in league annals (Texas State, 1997) that both the men’s and women’s teams are in the title game in the same year
? The Roadrunners’ 19 overall victories are the most since the 2003-04 squad won 19 games
? UTSA is 11-1 when holding opponents to under 70 points
? The Roadrunners have drained six or more 3-pointers in 24 games and they lead the SLC and rank 19th in the NCAA in threes per game (8.4)
? UTSA has made at least one 3-pointer in all 90 games under third-year head coach Brooks Thompson, including five or more treys 64 times
? The Roadrunners are posting an SLC-best 9.3 steals per game (6th/NCAA)
UTSA/Stephen F. Austin Series History: The Roadrunners lead the all-time series with Stephen F. Austin, 21-13, but the Lumberjacks have won the past four meetings including a 66-62 decision on March 7 in San Antonio. The two teams have split both matchups in the SLC tournament. UTSA defeated SFA, 74-70, in the 2004 SLC Championship Game at the Convocation Center, while the Jacks won a first round game, 71-60, on March 13, 2008, at the Merrell Center in the only neutral site meeting.
Last Meeting: Seniors Travis Gabbidon and Joey Shank combined for 24 points in their final game at the Convocation Center, but Josh Alexander poured in 21 to help Stephen F. Austin hold off UTSA, 66-62, on March 7. Gabbidon posted his fifth double-double of the season with 16 points and 12 rebounds, while Shank sank a pair of 3-pointers en route to eight points for the Roadrunners. Alexander scored 21, including 6-of-6 from the free throw line in the final minute to help SFA seal its second consecutive regular season championship. Kingley added 19 points and a game-high 14 rebounds for the Lumberjacks. Trailing by four with under a minute remaining, sophomore Devin Gibson ? who finished with nine points and five boards ? converted a driving layup to pull the Roadrunners to within 58-56 with 49 ticks on the clock. Eric Bell quickly answered with a layup, but Gabbidon drained a 3-pointer from the wing to make it a one-point game with 15 seconds to play. Forced to foul, UTSA put Alexander on the line where he converted both after an 0-2 start at the charity stripe. Now armed with a three-point lead, SFA then chose to foul Johnson, who made both free throws to make it 62-61 with under 10 seconds to play. The next two possessions saw the same result, as Alexander was fouled and made two freebies and Gibson was hacked to go to the line. He made the first but missed the second, but Gabbidon grabbed the offensive board and missed an off-balance jumper from the baseline with the clock winding down. Alexander got the rebound and made two free throws with under three seconds to play to secure the win.
Scouting Stephen F. Austin: The Lumberjacks have won seven straight games and the regular season champions enter Sunday’s game with a 23-7 overall record. The senior duo of Matt Kingsley - the SLC Player of the Year - and Josh Alexander lead the team in scoring at 16.1 and 14.5 points per game, respectively. Kingsley is the top rebounder (7.8 rpg), while Alexander has drained a team-high 70 3-pointers. Head coach Danny Kaspar is 157-103 in his ninth season at the helm.
Last Time Out: Senior Joey Shank scored a game-high 19 points, all in the second half, and UTSA moved into the championship game of the State Farm Southland Conference Basketball Tournament with a 57-55 victory over Nicholls on Friday night at the Merrell Center. Shank was held scoreless in the first half, as UTSA scored a season-low 19 points in a five-point deficit, but he caught fire after the break by rattling in five 3-pointers to help send the Roadrunners (19-12) into their first conference championship game since winning the 2004 SLC Tournament. The Folsom, Calif., native was 5-for-8 from behind the arc in the second half and in the final minute he dropped in a long trey with the shot clock buzzer going off to help UTSA snag the momentum for good.
SLC Tournament History: Now in its 18th year in the Southland Conference, UTSA is making its 14th appearance in the SLC Tournament and fifth in the Championship Game. The Roadrunners have won two titles (1999, 2004), have finished second twice (1992, 1993) and own an all-time record of 14-11 after defeating Sam Houston State (83-74) and Nicholls (57-55) in the first two rounds this year. UTSA, the No. 6 seed, is now 5-2 in neutral site tournament contests. Three teams seeded six or lower have won the SLC Tournament since 2000 (No. 7 UT Arlington, 2008; No. No. 6 Northwestern State, 2001; No. 7 Lamar, 2000).
UTSA In The SLC Championship Game:UTSA has posted a 2-2 record in its four all-time title game appearances.
March 12, 2004 - UTSA 74, SFA 70 (San Antonio)
March 6, 1999 - UTSA 71, Texas State 63 (Shreveport, La.)
March 7, 1993 - Louisiana-Monroe 80, UTSA 66 (Monroe, La.)
March 8, 1992 - Louisiana-Monroe 81, UTSA 77 (San Antonio)
Trio Named to All-SLC Squad: Senior Travis Gabbidon and sophomore Devin Gibson were named third-team All-Southland Conference and junior Omar Johnson collected honorable mention accolades, as the league office announced the 2008-09 All-Southland Conference Team on Tuesday.
Road Warriors: The Roadrunners played seven of their first 10 games away from the Convocation Center and finished that stretch with a 3-4 record. UTSA is 6-9 in true road games this season, with the six victories two more than the past two seasons combined, and is 2-0 in neutral site contests. Dating back to last February, UTSA is 11-11 in its past 22 games away from home.
On The Tube: UTSA has played nine televised contests this season and has posted a 6-3 record in those games. The Roadrunners have defeated UMKC (Metro Sports), SMU (Time Warner Cable), Texas State (Time Warner Cable), Southeastern Louisiana (Southland TV), Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (Time Warner Cable) and Nicholls (Southland TV) and have dropped TV games to Oklahoma State (Cowboy Sports Network), Iowa (Mediacom Connections) and UT Arlington (Southland TV).
Let’s Go Streaking: UTSA’s seven-game winning streak that began with a 76-72 win at UMKC on Dec. 22 and continued through a 62-55 victory at Nicholls on Jan. 14 is tied with Sam Houston State’s streak from Jan. 17-Feb. 7 and Stephen F. Austin’s current stretch for the longest in the Southland Conference this season. It also is the best at UTSA since the 2003-04 squad also won seven straight from Feb. 25-March 12. The Roadrunners now have won 16 of their last 24 contests, with five of those eight losses by a combined 15 points.
A Good Start: At 10-5, UTSA registered its best 15-game start since the 2001-02 team also began with a 10-5 mark. Five teams have started 10-5, which ranks second only to 11-4 starts in 1989-90 and 1990-91. UTSA surpassed last season’s win total of 13 at Southeastern Louisiana on Feb. 7 and its 19 victories are the most since the 2003-04 won 19, while the eight conference wins are an improvement of last season’s tally of seven and are the most since the 2004-05 squad won 10.
Non-Conference Success: UTSA picked up its ninth non-conference victory of the regular season on Jan. 21 against Texas-Pan American, breaking the school record of eight set in 1990-91. The Roadrunners have recorded six wins against Division I teams ? Rice, UMKC, Georgia State, SMU, Colgate, Texas-Pan American ? which is the most out of league play since the 1989-90 team also won six. The 1990-91 squad won a school-record eight. Three of this year’s non-conference DI victories came on the road, the most since UTSA joined a conference (Trans America Athletic) in 1986-87.
Senior Snags SLC Honors: Senior Travis Gabbidon was named Southland Conference Player of the Week on Jan. 26, his second honor in four weeks. The Phoenix, Ariz., native averaged 24.5 points, 10.5 rebounds and four steals and shot 65.4 percent (17-of-26) from the field and 81.3 percent (13-of-16) from the free throw line in games against Texas-Pan American and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. Gabbidon also collected the weekly award on Jan. 5 after posting 19.5 points and 5.5 rebounds in victories against SMU and Colgate.
Keys To Success: UTSA has discovered several keys to success this season. The Roadrunners 11-1 when holding opponents to under 70 points and 17-5 when holding them to under 50-percent shooting from the floor (4-0 under 40 percent), as opposed to a 2-7 record when foes shoot above 50 percent. UTSA also is 11-1 when it outrebounds opponents, with the only loss a 74-72 decision at Texas-Pan American in a game that the Roadrunners held a slim 29-28 advantage on the glass. UTSA also is 15-4 when leading at the half.
Hitting The Trifecta: The Roadrunners have been productive from beyond the 3-point line this season. Even with the arc moved one foot further from the basket, UTSA has shown it still can fill it up from downtown. Led by senior Joey Shank (72) and juniors Morris Smith IV (58) and Omar Johnson (51), the Roadrunners have drained a conference-leading 261 threes for an SLC-best 8.4 per-game average (19th/NCAA). UTSA, which surpassed last season’s total of 191 treys in the Central Arkansas win, has made at least one 3-pointer in all 90 games under third-year head coach Brooks Thompson, including five or more 64 times and six or more in 24 games this season. UTSA had made at least one three in 450 consecutive contests dating back to Jan. 5, 1994 (vs. Texas).
Success At The Line: A pair of Roadrunners have broken the school record for free throw percentage in a game this season. Senior Travis Gabbidon drained 10-of-10 from the line in the Colgate victory on Jan. 2 to eclipse the previous standard (minimum of 10 attempts required) of 92 percent (12-13) set by Leon Watson against Texas College on Nov. 22, 1998. In the Central Arkansas win on Feb. 11, junior Omar Johnson matched Gabbidon’s effort with a 10-for-10 performance from the charity stripe to help the Roadrunners fire at a season-high 87.5-percent (21-24) clip. Additionally, sophomore Devin Gibson was a perfect 9-for-9 from the charity stripe against Northwestern State, but a minimum of 10 made is required for the record. As a team, UTSA is shooting 70.8 percent (518-732) from the line, a considerable improvement over last season’s 65.8 percent (424-644) mark, and is 33-of-38 (86.8%) in the SLC Tournament.
Creating Havoc: The Roadrunners are forcing their opponents into an average of 18.3 turnovers per game this season. Ten opponents have committed 20 or more, led by a season-high 34 from East Central on Nov. 22. A large reason for UTSA’s success in creating opponent miscues is the fact that the team is coming up with a league-best 9.3 steals per contest (6th/NCAA). Led by 2007-08 NCAA steals champion Devin Gibson, a sophomore who is second nationally with 3.0 thefts per game, all 13 Roadrunners have teamed up to record 289 steals this year.
Taking Care Of The Rock: UTSA has been effective in taking care of the basketball this season. The Roadrunners are averaging just 14.0 turnovers per game and boast the top turnover margin (+4.3) in the Southland Conference (8th/NCAA). UTSA, which boasts a 17-8 record when forcing more turnovers than it commits, has topped 20 turnovers in a game just three times this season but still forced more by two of those opponents in victories against Texas Wesleyan and Texas-Pan American. The season-low of seven miscues came in the 76-72 win at UMKC on Dec. 22 and was matched in the 79-72 win over Lamar on Feb. 28. UTSA has committed just 23 turnovers (11.5 tpg) in the SLC Tournament.
Double-Double Tracker: UTSA has registered 12 double-doubles this year, including a team-high five by senior Travis Gabbidon.
Demarco Stepter, East Central (Nov. 22): 12 points, 11 rebounds
Devin Gibson, Texas-Pan American (Dec. 18): 16 points, 10 assists
Demarco Stepter, UMKC (Dec. 22) : 15 points, 11 rebounds
Demarco Stepter, SMU (Dec. 29): 10 points, 10 rebounds
Josh Bonney, Nicholls (Jan. 14): 15 points, 13 rebounds
Richie Frohlich, UT Arlington (Jan. 17): 14 points, 10 rebounds
Travis Gabbidon, UT Arlington (Jan. 17): 23 points, 10 rebounds
Travis Gabbidon, UT Arlington (Jan. 24): 23 points, 12 rebounds
Travis Gabbidon, Texas State (Jan. 28): 18 points, 10 rebounds
Travis Gabbidon, Southeastern Louisiana (Feb. 7): 11 points, 12 rebounds
Demarco Stepter, Northwestern State (Feb. 25): 11 points, 11 rebounds
Travis Gabbidon, Stephen F. Austin (March 7): 16 points, 12 rebounds
Balanced Attack: Led by senior Travis Gabbidon (12.7), junior Omar Johnson (12.8) and sophomore Devin Gibson (11.9), UTSA has displayed a balanced scoring attack this season. Six additional Roadrunners are averaging at least four points per contest: senior Joey Shank (9.3) and juniors Morris Smith IV (9.1), Josh Bonney (6.0), Demarco Stepter (6.2), Chris Allen (5.3) and Terry Fields (4.1).
King of Steals: Sophomore Devin Gibson, the 2007-08 Southland Conference Freshman of the Year and a preseason nominee for the Bob Cousy Award, has emerged as one of the nation’s top steals man over the past two seasons. The Cypress Falls High product became just the third freshman in history ? Jason Kidd is one of the other two ? to lead the NCAA in steals with 93 in 28 games last season for a 3.3 average. This year, despite missing five games with a back injury, he has tallied 79 steals for an NCAA-leading 3.0 per-game average. His 93 steals in 2007-08 rank second on the school’s single-season list behind Ronnie Ellison’s school-record 97 in 1990-91, while his 79 this season stand third. Gibson is contributing in a number of other important statistical categories, averaging 11.9 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.3 assists 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 172 steals in 54 career games (3.2 spg), which is fourth all-time. No other Roadrunner has recorded more thefts than Gibson in less than two full seasons. He also has tallied 706 points (13.1 ppg), ranking him 28th, and he stands fifth with 274 free throws, eighth in free throw percentage (.719), 10th in assists (229) and 47th in rebounds (214).
Welcome Back: Senior Travis Gabbidon and junior Omar Johnson both were plagued with injuries last season, but have emerged as two of the team’s top scorers 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 2003-04 ? and grabbed nine boards against Texas-Pan American. This season, Gabbidon is averaging 12.7 points and 6.4 rebounds per game this season, including 10.0 points and 7.5 boards in the two SLC Tournament games. 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 campaign. He leads the team in scoring at 12.8 points per game and has dished out a team-best 127 assists (4.2 avg; No. 8/single-season list).
Model of Consistency: Senior Travis Gabbidon has been one of UTSA’s most consistent players in his two-year career. In his 45 games with the Roadrunners, the Phoenix native has reached double figures in scoring 34 times, including a career-best 31 against Texas-Pan American last year and a season-high 25 against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (Jan. 24). He also has grabbed five or more rebounds 28 times, including a career high of 14 against Texas Wesleyan in 2007 and a season-high 12 three times, last vs. Stephen F. Austin on March 7. His 588 career points (13.1 ppg) rank 39th and his 280 career rebounds (6.2 rpg) stand 32nd on UTSA’s all-time list. Gabbidon, who has posted five double-doubles, including 16 and 12 against SFA in the last meeting, was named SLC Player of the Week twice this year (Jan. 5/Jan. 26).
You Got Shanked: The most experienced player on the squad with 59 games at the Division I level under his belt, senior Joey Shank has been a consistent threat from behind the arc with the Roadrunners. Last year, the Folsom, Calif., native drained 67 threes, the seventh-best season in school history, and made three or more in a game 12 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 has connected from downtown 72 times this year, the sixth-best season in UTSA annals, and he ranks sixth on UTSA’s career chart with 139 threes (2nd among two-year players). Additionally, he ranks 44th all-time with 545 career points and his 38.0 career 3-point field goal percentage stands fourth. Shank is 9-for-15 (60.0%) from downtown and is scoring 16.5 points per game in the SLC Tournament.
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 and rebounds in that contest.
