- Nation's No. 2 scorer, Jhivvan Jackson, goes for 37 points.
- Jackson moves into second on the UTSA all-time scoring list.
- Byron Frohnen sits 10 rebounds shy of the program record.
- UTSA is at Rice on Saturday at 7 p.m. in a game televised live on ESPN+.
DENTON, Texas -- League leader North Texas made 10 of its first 11 shots to earn an early lead and post a 98-78 win over UTSA men's basketball, on Thursday night at the Super Pit.
UTSA (9-11, 3-4 Conference USA) couldn't overcome the hot start from North Texas (13-8, 7-1 C-USA) as the Mean Green forced five early-in-the-game UTSA turnovers and made 10 of their first 11 shots, including three 3-pointers. The win extended the North Texas' winning streak to seven games.
The Roadrunners fell behind by as much as 16 in the first half and were able to cut the lead to six mid-way through the final period but North Texas responded with a 10-0 run late in the game to regain a double-digit lead and finish of the Roadrunners.
UTSA was led by the nation's No. 2 scorer, junior guard Jhivvan Jackson. The native of Bayamon, Puerto Rico, who prepped at Euless-Trinity High School in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, had 37 points on 10-of-19 shooting, with six rebounds and a 12 of 15 stretch from the free-throw line. It marked his seventh game with at least 30 points on the year and the 14th of his career.
Jackson moved into second in program history, passing UTSA great Derrick Gervin (1982-85), on the all-time scoring list. He sits shy of only Devin Brown (1998-02), who had 1,922 points over a 105-game career.
Keaton Wallace, who combines with Jackson to form the nation's highest scoring duo, had 22 points, three rebounds and one assist in 36 minutes.
Senior Byron Frohnen, who made a 120th consecutive start to open his career, grabbed six rebounds and now sits just in second in program history in career boards, behind only Jeromie Hill (2010-15).
The Mean Green outrebounded UTSA – the league's top rebounding team – 34-27. North Texas finished the game shooting 55 percent from the field, after a 62.5 percent clip in the first half, adding an 8 of 16 mark from 3-point range. UTSA shot 47.3 percent from the field.
Umoja Gibson (27) and Javion Hamlet (22) led the Mean Green, with Thomas Bell grabbing a game-high 15 rebounds.
UTSA will return to action on Saturday, traveling to face Rice at 7 p.m. at the Tudor Fieldhouse. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN+ and will also be live on the Roadrunners Sports Network on Ticket 760-AM and goUTSA.com, with the Voice of the Roadrunners, Andy Everett (play-by-play), calling the action.
North Texas took an early 17-10 lead at the first media timeout, sinking a trio of 3-pointers in their first three attempts, with UTSA getting five quick points from Jackson. UNT's run stretched to 12-0 to take a 23-10 lead before Jackson drilled a contested 3-pointer to get it to a 10-point game.
UNT kept UTSA at a distance in the remainder of the first half with UTSA's rally late in the stanza allowing the Roadrunners to cut the lead to nine after a drive a dish from Makani Whiteside to find Barisic for a 3-pointer. The Mean Green took a 49-36 lead into the halftime, shooting 62.5 percent from the field, making 20 of their first 32 efforts, including their last five shots of the period.
A quick five points from Wallace forced an early timeout from UNT in the opening minutes of the half. Jackson's steal and layup gave UTSA a 7-0 run and cut the UNT lead to 55-44 with 17 minutes left in regulation.
The Roadrunners cut the lead to single digits after the first media timeout, 59-49 and an Atem Bior hook shot brought UTSA within five but UNT got a 3-pointer from James Reese to stretch it back to 10.
UTSA's run continued to cut the lead to 68-63 with just under 12 minutes left, with Jackson owning 10 points during the run, Wallace drilling a transition 3-pointer and Germany using the glass for a putback.
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