BEAUMONT — Nick Allen recorded his second double-double of the season with 11 points and a game-high 13 rebounds, but Nick Garth had a career-high 24 points off the bench to lead Lamar past UTSA, 78-58, at the Montagne Center on Tuesday night.
Jeff Beverly added 17 points for the Roadrunners (1-4) as the junior reached double figures for the fifth time this season. From nearby League City, Beverly went 7-of-13 from the field and hit three free throws to go along with a pair of rebounds and a steal.
Giovanni De Nicolao neared a double-double of his own with nine points and a season-high eight assists to help UTSA score 34 points in the paint.
Meanwhile, Garth went 8-of-16 from the field and 6-of-12 from behind the arc to register his career high point total. The sophomore went for 18 points in the second half for the Cardinals (3-2), who went on an early 15-0 run to take control of the game.
Four other players reached double figures for Lamar, led by 13 points from Colton Weisbrod.
Beverly got UTSA on the board first with a jumper and a De Nicolao basket gave the visitors a 4-2 lead before the Cardinals' 15-0 run.
Marcus Owens' layup with 12:51 to play in the half closed the run, which put Lamar ahead 17-4. A pair of Nick Billingsley free throws put and end to the spurt and the Roadrunners buckled down on defense for the next 10 minutes.
Lamar started the contest hitting 8-of-14 shots, but the UTSA defense forced misses on 10 of its next 11 attempts to get back in the game.
Nick Allen benefitted from a pair of nifty passes through traffic that the sophomore converted into layups, first by De Nicolao and then from George Willborn III. Allen then drove the lane and dished to an open Lucas O'Brien for a basket as the Roadrunners continued to whittle away the deficit.
O'Brien would add a pair of free throws and De Nicolao's hook shot in the lane trimmed the Lamar lead to 23-20 with 2:25 to go in the half.
However, the Cardinals outscored the Roadrunners 9-1 the rest of the period to take a 32-21 advantage into halftime.
UTSA started the second half hitting 7-of-12 shots from the floor, including the its first two 3-pointers of the half, and the visitors went on an 8-0 run to trim the deficit to 43-40 with 12:25 to play.
Beverly started the run with a pair of free throws before layups from Allen and De Nicolao. Allen then capped the stretch with another bucket, but UTSA would get no closer the rest of the way.
Garth and the Cardinals answered by connecting from behind the arc. Four of his six 3-pointers came in the final 10 minutes and Lamar broke the game open with a late 12-2 run en route to the 78-58 final.
UTSA will return home to face I-35 rival Texas State (2-2) at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 25 in the Convocation Center.
