SAN ANTONIO – Fueled by four in double-figures, UTSA outlasted Lamar 76-69 in the opening round of the 2018 CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament (CIT) on Wednesday night at the Convocation Center.
UTSA will host the quarterfinal round of the CIT against a to-be-determined opponent on Thu., March 22 at 7 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online HERE or by calling the UTSA Athletics Ticket Office at 210-458-UTSA (8872).
Tickets for the game are $10 for general admission and $5 for groups purchasing 10 or more tickets. Postseason tournament games are not included as part of season ticket packages and no complimentary tickets are available.
The win, which was just UTSA's second in postseason play, moved the Roadrunners to 20-14 on the season and marked the program's first 20-win campaign since 2010-11. Lamar ends its season with a 19-14 mark.
Deon Lyle poured in 14 first-half points, including four 3-pointers, on his way to a Roadrunners team-high 16. Giovanni De Nicolao scored 14, Nick Allen 13 and Byron Frohnen 11. In addition to their scoring, Lyle led UTSA and tied a season-high with eight rebounds, while De Nicolao dished out six assists.
Nick Garth paced four Cardinals with 16 points, Joey Frenchwood and Josh Nzeakor each had 13 and Colton Weisbrod collected a 12-point, 11-rebound double-double.
UTSA closed the game shooting 47 percent from the floor (26 of 55) as Lamar made 39 percent of its attempts (26 of 67). Lamar controlled the board 41-36
UTSA made five of its first 11 shots of the second half to erase its halftime deficit and take a 45-44 lead on De Nicolao's three from the top of the key at the 13:03 mark. Moments later Lamar's Garth tied the game at the free throw line, but UTSA responded with a Frohnen and De Nicolao score inside, then Wallace connected from deep for a 7-0 run that lasted all of 65 seconds and put the Roadrunners up 53-46 with 11 minutes to play.
Lamar answered with a 12-7 run of its own that included two threes by Garth to bring the Cardinals with a possession at 60-58 at the 4:23 mark. However, De Nicolao banked in a three and Allen scored in the paint to push the Roadrunners ahead by seven with 3:30 remaining on the game clock.
Lamar got no closer than five the rest of the way as UTSA won its 12th home game of the season and 23 in two years under head coach Steve Henson.
The first half played as an offensive struggle despite the teams combining to make 26-of-64 attempts. Lamar led as by as many as eight at the 5:20 mark before UTSA went on a 12-4 run, which was fueled by three Lyle treys, to tie the game at 29 with 2:02 to go in the period. UTSA later tied the Cardinals at 31 before Weisbrod scored inside with 38 seconds on the clock to provide Lamar with a 33-31 edge heading into the locker rooms.
Up next
With a win UTSA advances to the quarterfinals of the CIT against a to-be-determined opponent with the Roadrunners hosting at 7 p.m. on Thursday, March 22.