SAN ANTONIO — Sophomore Melvin Johnson III scored 20 points and senior Devin Gibson added 18 in his home finale to help lead UTSA to a 70-58 victory against Central Arkansas on Wednesday night at the Convocation Center.
The Roadrunners, 15-13 overall, stayed alive for one of the eight spots in the State Farm Southland Conference Tournament by running their league record to 8-7, and they moved into a three-way tie for sixth with Nicholls and Southeastern Louisiana. The Bears fell to 5-23 (1-14 SLC).
It was a wild night around the league, as co-leaders McNeese State and Texas State both lost to fall to 10-5. Sam Houston State helped create a three-way tie for third at 9-6 by defeating Stephen F. Austin, which fell to 9-6 along with Northwestern State, an overtime loser to Nicholls. UT Arlington dropped to 7-8 after a loss at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, but UTSA still likely faces a must-win Saturday against the Mavericks to get into the tournament.
Johnson III drained 4-of-6 from beyond the arc and was 6-for-11 from the floor overall in addition to a perfect 4-of-4 at the free-throw line in posting his second straight 20-point game and sixth of the season.
Gibson, who left the game after a blow to the head early in the first half and had to change from his No. 21 to the No. 10 jersey due to blood, was 5-of-10 from the field and he tied for the team lead with eight rebounds to go along with five assists and three steals.
Junior Stephen Franklin joined that duo in double figures with 15 points and six boards.
The Roadrunners led by as many as 14 but had to withstand a couple of Bears' rallies in the second half to close out their third consecutive 11-3 home slate.
UTSA held a six-point lead at the half and opened the second stanza on an 11-3 run keyed by treys from Johnson III and Franklin to push the lead to 44-30 with 16:48 remaining on the clock.
Central Arkansas answered with a 12-2 stretch to get to within two possessions. Imad Qahwash drained a trey from the wing and Ryan Williams hit one of two at the line to pull UCA to within four (46-42) with 12:28 to play.
Gibson connected from long distance to give UTSA a 58-48 lead four minutes later, but the Bears responded with back-to-back layups from Mark Rutledge to pull to within a half dozen.
Franklin found the range from downtown again and Gibson drained a jumper to push the advantage back to 11. Rutledge then made one of two at the line and slammed one home with less than two minutes remaining to help UCA get back to within seven, but UTSA held on for there by making 3-of-4 at the charity stripe and it used a pair of late baskets from Johnson III to seal the win.
Ryan Williams led UCA with 19 points and Rutledge added 15. Tadre Sheppard pulled down a game-high 13 rebounds. The Bears struggled from the floor and the free-throw line, shooting just 32.2 percent overall, including 1-of-15 from beyond the arc, and 54.3 percent (19-of-35) at the line.
UTSA held a 33-27 halftime lead, despite shooting just 34.5 percent against the Bears’ zone defense. Central Arkansas attempted 24 free throws in the first half but made just 11 and shot only 27.6 percent from the floor overall, including 0-for-9 from downtown.
Dewan Clayborn was whistled for a foul at the 16:04 mark of the first half after a hand to the face struck Gibson above the left eye. The play was reviewed by the officials, causing a delay of approximately 15 minutes, and it was determined that the foul was flagrant, which resulted in the ejection of Clayborn.
Franklin had five early points to help UTSA jump out to a 13-3 lead. Meanwhile, UCA missed its first eight shot attempts from the field and had just three free throws before Terry Tidwell found the bottom of the net on a layup at the 13:05 mark to end the drought.
The Roadrunners will conclude the regular season on the road against UT Arlington (13-15, 7-8 SLC) at 7 p.m. on Saturday.
