HUNTINGTON, W.Va. -- Coming off an overtime loss at WKU on Thursday night, UTSA men's basketball will continue its two-game road swing, traveling to face Marshall at 6 p.m. CT on Saturday night at the Cam Henderson Center.
The game will air on STADIUM on Facebook. The game also can be heard live on Ticket 760 AM with the pregame show beginning at 5:30 p.m. with the Voice of the Roadrunners, Andy Everett, calling the action. The radio broadcast also can be heard live via the free iHeartRadio app and online at goUTSA.com/mbb_audio.
UTSA Roadrunners (12-10, 6-3 C-USA) at Marshall (13-9, 6-3 C-USA)
6 p.m. • Saturday, Feb. 2, 2019
Cam Henderson Center • Huntington, W.Va.
Live video: STADIUM on Facebook
Radio: Ticket 760 AM | goUTSA.com/mbb_audio
Headlines and Storylines
• The Roadrunners are coming off a thrilling overtime loss at WKU on Thursday, with UTSA getting a career-high 46 points from Jhivvan Jackson.
• UTSA owned a four-point lead with just over a minute remaining at WKU, before the Hilltoppers took advantage of a late turnover to even the game, forcing overtime and outscoring UTSA 18-10 in extra time.
• A pair of dynamic sophomore scoring guards pace the UTSA offensive attack, in Keaton Wallace and Jhivvan Jackson. Jackson leads the league with 22.7 points per game – in just 29.2 minutes per contest – while Wallace leads the team with 34.5 minutes per game and owns 19.5 points per outing.
• After Jackson, the reigning C-USA Freshman of the Year, suffered a season-ending injury late in 2017-18 and missed the first three games of the season, all UTSA losses, he returned on a minutes restriction for the next five outings before being inserted in the starting lineup over the last 13 games. During his last 13 outings, UTSA is 10-3 and Jackson is averaging 23.2 points in 32.2 minutes per game.
• Over their last five games, Jackson is averaging 29 points per game and Wallace 25.4 points per game. Over the last 10 games, Jackson sports 25.5 points per game and Wallace 20.5.
• Last Saturday, UTSA had a historic comeback win over ODU. The Roadrunners rallied from down 17 with just over three minutes remaining to get a game-winning trey in the corner from Wallace with 15 seconds left. It marked the second largest comeback in NCAA history.
• UTSA opened the 2018-19 conference schedule with a 4-0 mark, equaling its best start to a league schedule in program history.
Scouting the Herd
• The Thundering Herd enter the matchup with UTSA after posting a win over UTEP, 91-86, behind a 44-point outburst from Jon Elmore.
• Elmore leads the Herd with 20.2 points per game, adding 3.9 rebounds. C.J. Burks averages 17.9 points and 4.3 rebounds, with Jannson Williams sporting 9.1 points and 4.5 rebounds per game.
• Marshall had lost three straight games before its win over UTEP, after opening the season with a 5-0 mark in league play.
Series history
• The all-time series with UTSA is tied at 3-3, with Marshall owning the lone win in the series meeting in Huntington in 2017.
• The Herd won the last meeting, 95-81 in 2018 in Frisco in the 2017-18 C-USA Tournament.
A win would ...
• Improve UTSA to 13-10 and 7-3 in C-USA play
• Give UTSA 13 wins in its last 18 games
• Make UTSA 4-3 in the series vs. Marshall
Buzzer beaters
• UTSA's run has been boosted by a pair of last-season wins, including a game-winning jumper from Jhivvan Jackson with 1.6 seconds to beat then league-unbeaten North Texas and a game-winning shot from Keaton Wallace in a 74-73 comeback win over then first-place Old Dominion with 15 seconds left.
• UTSA has also suffered a pair of last-second losses, falling in games after fouling its opponent with under a minute in regulation vs. Texas State and St. Edwards. UTSA owned a four-point lead with a minute left and had the ball but a turnover on the ensuing possession allowed WKU to get back in the game, forcing overtime with the Toppers outscoring UTSA 18-10 in extra time.
Holy comeback, batman
• UTSA trailed by 18 points in the second half of its win over Old Dominion, including a 17-point hole with just over three minutes left in regulation.
• UTSA's 18-point comeback marked its largest in program history and eclipsed the previous mark of a 16 point comeback.
• The Roadrunners went on a 22-4 run over the final three minutes to earn the win, with Keaton Wallace hitting the go-ahead 3-pointer from the corner with 15 seconds left and UTSA escaping after four ODU attempts at the go-ahead bucket in the final tallies.
• Wallace finished with 29 points and tied his career high with nine 3-pointers, with Jhivvan Jackson owning 21 points and a career-best equaling five dimes.
• ESPN's win-probability matrix had ODU with a 99.9% chance to win the game in the final minutes before UTSA's improbable comeback.
• It marks the second-largest deficit overcome in the last five minutes in NCAA Division I history.
• The comeback is tied for the largest deficit overcome, in a game that didn't require overtime, in the last five minutes in NCAA Division I history.
Putting a hurting on the 49ers
• UTSA's 45-point win over Charlotte on Thursday marked its largest margin of victory in a conference game in 29 years, dating back to a 128-70 win over Georgia State in 1990.
• In holding Charlotte to just 45 points, it marked the fewest points for a conference opponent in 23 years, dating back to limiting Texas State to 42 points in 1996.
Most 20+ point games in a season (since 2006-07)
• Despite missing the first three games of the season, playing the next six games on a minute-restriction and suffering a season-ending injury, Jhivvan Jackson is just short of equaling the program record for 20+ point games in a season, set by Derrick Gervin in 1984-85.
Jhivvan the microwave
• UTSA's scoring punch has been powered for a second consecutive year by dynamic guard Jhivvan Jackson. A six-foot scoring machine, Jackson - the 2017-18 Conference USA Freshman of the Year - suffered a season-ending injury late in the campaign a year ago. He missed the first three games this year and returned on a minute-restriction for the following eight contests.
• A two-time C-USA Player of the Week in 2018-19, Jackson has been a force, leading the league with 22.7 points per game in 19 games with 14 starts.
• Jackson's 40-minute averages are staggering: 31.1 points, 4.7 rebounds and 3.2 assists. He is averaging 0.77 points per minute.
• Jackson is averaging 32.2 minutes, 24.9 points and 4.1 rebounds per game since returning to the starting lineup.
• He had a streak of eight straight games with at least 20 points, the second-longest streak in program history, just shy of Derrick Gervin's nine straight in 1984-85. His current streak stands at 20-or-more points in 15 of the last 17 games.
• Over the last five games, Jackson is averaging 29 points and 2.8 rebounds per game. Over his last 10 games, Jackson is averaging 25.5 points and 3.8 rebounds per outing, with 14 steals.
• In league play, Jackson averages 24.8 points and 3.1 rebounds per game.
• Jackson made his return from injury at the Gulf Coast Showcase on Nov. 19-21. The sophomore guard averaged 13.7 points in limited minutes (15.0 mpg) in the three neutral-site contests. Jackson drained nine 3-pointers and dished out five assists to help the Roadrunners to a 1-2 record, including scoring 21 on the strength of five treys to help UTSA to a 76-65 victory over Florida Gulf Coast on the final day of the tournament.
• In UTSA's win at Houston Baptist, Jackson went up to 21 minutes, collecting 21 points on a career-high 11 free throws. Days later in a rivalry matchup with Texas State, Jackson got off to a sluggish start but finished with a flourish, owning a team-high 22 points and connecting on five 3-pointers. In a non-conference win over Mid-America Christian, Jackson poured in 28 points.
• With UTSA off to a sluggish, post-Christmas-break start vs. SE Oklahoma State, Jackson put together career highs in points (32) and rebounds (10) in his first career double-double, earning C-USA Player of the Week accolades. He earned his second player of the week honors after splashing a game-winning vs. previously league-unbeaten UNT.
• Jackson notched a game-best 28 points in a 45 point win over Charlotte, including six 3-pointers.
• Jackson exploded in a 46-point outing on Jan. 31 at WKU, setting a career high, ranking third in UTSA single-game history and checking in second in C-USA history in points in a game.
• The second-team all-conference selection set the UTSA freshman scoring record with 534 points and led the team with 18.4 per game. He shot 43.1 percent from the field for the season and tallied three 30-point, 14 20-point and 25 double-figure scoring performances.
Elite guard play
• UTSA's two dynamic sophomore guards, Jhivvan Jackson and Keaton Wallace have shouldered the scoring load in 2018-19. Wallace has been a fixture in the lineup, with team highs in minutes (34.3) and ranking second in points per game (18.9). Jackson returned from injury to come off the bench in five straight games before making the last 11 consecutive starts as his minutes restriction has been lifted.
• Since Jackson's return to the playing rotation on Nov. 19 vs. UC Irvine – the fourth game of the season – Wallace is averaging 20.3 points per game and 5.4 rebounds per outing, with the pair combining for 53 percent of UTSA's scoring punch over the last 18 games.
• In addition to the scoring duo of Jackson and Wallace, junior guard Giovanni De Nicolao is a veteran leading the offensive attack. De Nicolao ranks ninth in UTSA history in games started. De Nicolao is averaging 6.9 points and 4.7 rebounds per game.
• The dynamic guard play is old hat for UTSA coach Steve Henson, who has mentored some of the top scoring guards in college basketball history, including former national player of the year Buddy Hield while at Oklahoma.
Win streak snapped at seven
• UTSA had its win streak snapped at seven games after a loss at Middle Tennessee on Jan. 17.
• It equaled the longest winning streak for the Roadrunners in 30 years.
Wallace emerging as do-everything threat
• Sophomore guard Keaton Wallace has emerged as a steady all-around weapon for UTSA through the first 22 games this season. While his scoring punch was a known commodity through the first 57 games of his career, it has been his emergence as an above-the-rim contributor during a breakout sophomore season that has been spurred into a weapon on the UTSA roster.
• The 6-foot-3 Wallace ranks second on the team rebounding in conference play with 6.3 rebounds per game, while averaging 21.4 points, connecting from 41 percent from 3-point land and hitting 25 of 29 free-throws vs. C-USA foes.
• Last week, Wallace was a dynamic threat, combining for 22 points per game over two outings, with four rebounds and seven assists.
• He splashed the biggest shot of his career to complete a 17-point comeback vs. first place ODU, hitting a three in the corner for a 74-73 win with 15 seconds left. He had 29 points in the win.
• Wallace was blistering hot in a win over Mid-America Christian on Dec. 8, setting career highs in points (35), 3-pointers (nine), rebounds (nine) and blocks (three). His nine treys marked the second-most in UTSA single-game history.
• In a matchup with rival Texas State on Dec. 1, Wallace logged a career-high 39 minutes, collecting 19 points.
• In a pair of wins over UTEP to open league play, Wallace posted a game-high 23 points on Jan. 3, with eight rebounds and a career-high four blocks, before going for 16 points and four boards in the win on Jan. 5.
• Wallace earned his first career double-double in a win over North Texas, collecting 11 points and 10 rebounds. He followed that with his second consecutive double-double, collecting 24 points and 10 boards at Middle Tennessee.
• He followed that performance with a 33-point game at UAB, including a career-high tying nine 3-pointers. He just missed a third straight double-double with nine rebounds.
• Wallace starred in UTSA's epic comeback win over ODU in a battle for first place at The Convo, collecting 29 points and five boards with the game-winning 3-pointer from the corner with 15 seconds remaining to complete an 18-point comeback with a 22-4 run over the final three minutes, the largest comeback in UTSA history.
• A 2017-18 Conference USA All-Freshman Team selection, Wallace averaged 11.4 points last year.
Allen more than muscle
• Nick Allen has emerged as a threat from virtually anywhere on the floor, as the Surprise, Ariz., native is averaging 9.7 points and 5.3 rebounds per game to go along with 32 assists through the first 22 contests. The 6-foot-8 forward is third on the team with 28 3-pointers.
• He turned in the best outing of his career in a win over Rice, totaling a career-best 20 points, including a career-high four threes, with five rebounds. In his career, Allen has 525 career rebounds in 121 games, ranking ninth in program history.
• Allen opened the campaign with 15 points and eight rebounds against St. Edward's and he also has scored in double figures against Oklahoma (15), South Dakota State (12), Florida Gulf Coast (13), Bethany (12), SE Oklahoma State (12), UTEP (11) and on the road at UTEP (14), Rice (20), North Texas (16) and ODU (13). He had a streak of five straight games - including the first four in C-USA play - with double figures.
School-record start to league play
• UTSA opened the 2018-19 Conference USA slate with four consecutive wins, equaling the best conference start in program history.
• UTSA earned consecutive wins over UTEP, before topping Rice in a 16-point win. A jumper with 1.6 seconds left from Jhivvan Jackson lifted UTSA past previously league-unbeaten North Texas to push UTSA to a 4-0 start.
• The Roadrunners had their roaring league opening snapped by a three-point loss at Middle Tennessee the following week, with UTSA taking a 14-point hole into half but a 55-point second stanza wasn't enough to complete the comeback.
• UTSA is averaging 80.2 points, 37.9 rebounds, 15 assists, 9.7 turnovers, 6.2 steals and 3.1 blocks per game in league play. Jackson leads the team with 24.8 points per game, with Keaton Wallace adding 21.4 points and 6.3 rebounds per game. Nick Allen averages 11.2 points and 5.2 rebounds, with Giovanni De Nicolao sporting 6.4 points and 5.0 rebounds. Byron Frohnen averages 4.9 points and 6.6 rebounds per game.
Defending home court
• Under head coach Steve Henson, UTSA has posted a 31-10 record at the Convocation Center. The Roadrunners went 11-3 at home in 2016-17 and 12-4 in 2017-18.
• In 2018-19, UTSA is 8-3 at The Convo and has won eight consecutive games at home.
• Prior to the last two seasons, UTSA last posted consecutive 11-win home seasons when the program went 11-3 in 2008-09, 2009-10 and 2010-11 as members of the Southland Conference.
• The 1991-92 team was the last Roadrunners squad to win more than 12 games at home, finishing 14-1.
Team-first mindset in Atem Bior
• With UTSA missing dynamic scoring threat Jhivvan Jackson early in the year due to injury, the coaching staff turned to junior college transfer Atem Bior as the starting lineup replacement for the first eight games of the year.
• A 6-foot-7, 220-pound native of Bisbane, Australia, Bior averages 5.4 points and 4.8 rebounds per game.
• Bior has played 17.6 minutes per game since Jackson returned to the lineup. With Jackson back in the fold as a starter, Bior is averaging 4.8 points and 4.4 rebounds per game.
• In his eight starts to open the year, Bior averaged 6.5 points, 5.6 rebounds and 24.5 minutes per game.
• Bior is averaging 10.8 points, 9.4 rebounds and one blocked shot per 40 minutes played.
• While playing 2017-18 at New Mexico Military Institute, Bior average 13.1 points and 8.7 rebounds, sported 7.2 points and 4.1 rebounds per game at New Mexico Highlands in 2016-17 after redshirting the 2015-16 season at NM Highlands.
Maestro runs the point
• Junior point guard Giovanni De Nicolao is a veteran at the top of the UTSA offensive attack. The Italian has made 90 consecutive starts to open his career and has been a consistent, steady weapon for the Roadrunners.
• On Saturday at UAB, De Nicolao grabbed a career high 14 rebounds, the most for a UTSA player in 2018-19.
• De Nicolao recorded his first career double-double in his 70th career game as the Italian scored 12 points and grabbed 10 rebounds against Oklahoma on Nov. 12. De Nicolao made four shots from the field, including two threes, and connected twice from the free-throw line. His 10 rebounds consisted of two offensive boards and eight on the defensive glass.
• De Nicolao posted a season-high 19 points, seven assists and five rebounds in a win over Rice, adding a career-best two blocks and a steal.
• In a win at UTEP, De Nicolao was a well-rounded force with eight rebounds, seven points and three assists.
• De Nicolao is averaging 6.8 points, 4.5 rebounds and a team-high 3.2 assists per game this season.
• De Nicolao is one of five players in school annals with at least 700 points (ranks 37th in career history), 300 rebounds (37th), 300 assists (7th) & 140 steals (10th).
Trio among the Most-used players in school history
• Senior Nick Allen is leaving a large mark on the program over the course of his career. He has played in 121 games and started 91 in his career, ranking eighth in starts and third in games played.
• Juniors Byron Frohnen and Giovanni De Nicolao also rank among the tops in program history in starts, checking in ninth.
Buckets in the Clutch
• At the charity stripe when the game is on the line, over the last five minutes, Jhivvan Jackson is 21 of 23 and Keaton Wallace is 15 of 17. Jackson has 79 points (4.2 points per final five minutes) and Wallace 79 (3.6 points per final five) over the final five minutes in 2018-19.
• Junior Atem Bior has gone 8-of-9 at the charity stripe over the last five minutes during the year.
Topping the century mark
• Twice in 2018-19 UTSA has reached 100+ points in a game, with the Roadrunners owning a 41-7 all-time record when reaching the century mark.
• UTSA owns a 104-74 win over Mid-America Christian and a 101-77 win over Bethany College.
• It marks the first time UTSA has topped 100 points twice in a single season since a pair of overtime losses in the 1996-97 season. The last time the Roadrunners topped 100 points twice in a season without the benefit of overtime came during the 1992-93 season.
First off the bench
• UTSA freshman guard Adokiye Iyaye has been the first player off the bench in a team-high nine games in 2018-19.
• A 6-foot-3 guard out of Oklahoma City, Okla., Iyaye has emerged as UTSA's go-to sixth man, averaging 18.9 minutes and 5.3 points per game.
Third season of the Steve Henson era
• The 2018-19 season marks the third of the Steven Henson era at UTSA. Henson, who came to the Alamo City from Lon Kruger's staff at Oklahoma, has guided the Roadrunners to a 46-44overall mark to this point. Under Henson's tutelage, UTSA won a program-best 11 Conference USA contests last season and picked up UTSA's second consecutive Conference USA Tournament win. Moreover, Henson coached Jhivvan Jackson to C-USA Freshman of the Year and Deon Lyle to league Sixth Player of the Year.
Yo, Adrian!
• After suffering a season-ending knee injury in last year's opener, redshirt freshman Adrian Rodriguez is medically cleared for the 2018-19 season.
• Before suffering the injury, the 6-foot-7 forward from Tulsa, Okla., scored 10 points and grabbed eight rebounds in 14 minutes off the bench against East Central.
• The 6-foot-7 big man played 12 minutes against St. Edward's in the season lid-lifter, collecting five rebounds and dishing out a pair of assists. He followed that performance with six points and four boards in 16 minutes against Oklahoma.
90 straight starts
• Juniors Byron Frohnen and Giovanni De Nicolao are projected to make their 90th consecutive starts on Saturday at Marshall. The first two signees of head coach Steve Henson in Spring 2016 have started all 89 games of their careers. Frohnen has started at both the small and power forward positions, while De Nicolao has been the stalwart at point guard.
C-USA Bonus play
• Conference USA rolled out an innovative scheduling format for the 2018-19 league contests. The new C-USA schedule format will see the 14 teams play each other once and their travel partner twice in the first seven weeks of the conference season. Following the first 14 league contests, teams will be placed into one of three groups based on their conference standing. The teams will be divided into two groups of five (1-5 and 6-10) and a group of four (11-14). During the final three weeks, teams will play four games (two home/two away) within their respective grouping. Home and away matchups will be determined by the preset formula.
Frohnen on the boards
• Junior forward Byron Frohnen leads UTSA and ranks seventh in Conference USA with 7.10rebounds per game through the first 21 contests.
• The Las Vegas native has reached double figures on the boards in four games with 10 in the season opener against St. Edward's and 11 at Oklahoma State. In a rivalry tilt vs. Texas State, Frohnen grabbed 12 boards, adding 12 boards vs. Arkansas. Frohnen added a season-best 13 rebounds in a win over UTEP.
• Frohnen's 632 rebounds in 90 career games is seventh on the UTSA career list. He sits behind Bruce Wheatley (1987-90) for sixth (668) in career history.
759 straight with a trey
• UTSA has made at least one 3-point field goal in each of its last 759 consecutive games, which ranks as the 21st-longest streak in the nation. The last time the Roadrunners failed to connect from long range came on Jan. 5, 1994, in a 91-69 loss to Texas (0-for-6). To put the time frame in perspective: Bill Clinton had not yet completed his first full year as POTUS, Hero by Mariah Carey was on top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart, Mrs. Doubtfire was the No. 1 movie in the box office and the Dallas Cowboys were 15 days from winning Super Bowl XXVIII, 30-13, over the Buffalo Bills.
3-Point Record in 2017-18
• After making just 172 3-pointers all of 2016-17, the 2017-18 Roadrunners set the UTSA single-season team record with 353. The previous record was 272 by the 2011-12 squad.
• The Roadrunners' 10.1 triples per game led Conference USA and ranked 19th in the NCAA.
• UTSA's 353 makes last season ranked fifth on the Conference USA single season list. The conference record is 375 by the 2007-08 Houston Cougars.
• Deon Lyle (who elected to depart the program to pursue a professional career in the Junior Basketball Association after his junior season), Jhivvan Jackson and Keaton Wallace led the Roadrunners from deep with 96, 77 and 74 made triples, respectively. Junior point guard Giovanni De Nicolao made 36 and senior big man Nick Allen stepped out to hit 33 threes, which was 13 more than his first two seasons combined.
• Led by Wallace's 87 3-pointers, UTSA has made 205 threes through the first 22 contests this season, an average of 9.3 per game. Jackson and Wallace rank as the top two players in C-USA in three-point attempts and makes in 2018-19.
Henson awarded contract extension
• The University of Texas System Board of Regents approved on May 1 a contract extension for UTSA head men's basketball coach Steve Henson that will run through the 2023-24 season.
• The contract extends Henson's original deal an additional three seasons and raises his base salary from $280,000 to $325,000 per year.
Who is moving up in the record book?
• Giovanni De Nicolao needs one steal to equal Preston Ivory (1988-91) for 10th in school career history.
• De Nicolao needs nine points to move into 31st in UTSA career history in scoring.
• De Nicolao needs five rebounds to move into 34th in UTSA career history.
• De Nicolao needs to start one more game to equal David President (2001-05) for seventh in career starts.
• De Nicolao needs 21 assists to move into sixth in UTSA career history.
• Nick Allen needs two games played to equal Jerome Hill (2010-15) for the program record holder with 122 games played.
• Allen needs two games started to move into a tie for seventh with David President (2001-05).
• Allen needs five rebounds to equal Devin Gibson (2007-11) for eighth in UTSA career history.
• Allen needs seven points to move into 23rd in UTSA career history.
• Keaton Wallace needs nine 3-pointers to equal the school single-season record.
• Wallace needs seven points to move into 25th in UTSA career history.
• Wallace needs four 3-pointers to equal Jeromie Hill (2010-15) for fifth in UTSA career history.
• Jhivvan Jackson needs three 3-pointers to equal Ronnie Ellison (1989-92) for eighth in UTSA career history.
• Jackson needs 18 points to equal Kannon Burrage (2011-13) for 16th in UTSA career history.
• Jackson needs 24 3-pointers to equal the single-season school record.
• Byron Frohnen needs 36 rebounds to equal Bruce Wheatley (1987-90) for sixth in career boards.
• Frohnen needs to start two more games to equal David President (2001-05) for seventh in career starts.
• Frohnen needs 16 points to move into 39th in UTSA career history.
Up Next
• The Roadrunners will return to action on Thursday, returning home to face FIU at 7 p.m. at the Convocation Center. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN+ and will be available on Ticket 760 AM with the Voice of the Roadrunners, Andy Everett, calling the action.
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