- Roadrunners host Blue Raiders on Saturday at 3 p.m. on ESPN+ and CW-35.
- Senior Byron Frohnen broke UTSA record for rebounds on Thursday.
- Jhivvan Jackson (26.0 ppg) & Keaton Wallace (18.4) are the nation's highest scoring duo.
- Middle Tennessee has won five straight vs. UTSA.
SAN ANTONIO – The UTSA men's basketball team will return to action on Saturday, hosting Middle Tennessee at 3 p.m. at the Convocation Center.
The game will be televised live on ESPN+ and locally on CW-35. Fans can also hear the game live on the Roadrunners Sports Network, with the Voice of UTSA, Andy Everett, calling the action live on Ticket 760-AM and goUTSA.com.
UTSA comes into the matchup with Middle Tennessee off a loss to UAB on Thursday, 76-68 at the Convocation Center. The Blazers outscored UTSA 42-32 in the second half to erase a two-point lead and upend UTSA's seven-game winning streak at home. UTSA got 26 points from Keaton Wallace and 20 from Jhivvan Jackson and senior Byron Frohnen grabbed four rebounds to pass Jeromie Hill (2010-15) for first place on the UTSA rebounding list.
UTSA (10-12, 4-5 Conference USA) comes into the matchup with the Blue Raiders having won four of its last seven games after opening up the league slate 0-2. UTSA has averaged 78.4 points per game, shooting 43.3 percent as a team and 36.1 percent from distance. Opponents are shooting 44.6 percent from the field and 33.4 percent from range. UTSA is averaging 78.4 points, 38.7 rebounds, 13.6 assists and six steals per game.
The Roadrunners are led by the backcourt combination of juniors Jhivvan Jackson and Keaton Wallace, who combined to average 44.4 points per game to lead the nation's scoring duos. Jackson ranks second in the NCAA with 26 points per game, adding six rebounds per outing to rank second among the NCAA's players six-feet and under. Wallace, who averaged 20.2 points per game last year, is sporting 18.4 points and 4.6 rebounds per game.
Junior forward Luka Barisic ranks second on the club with 7.4 points and 3.1 rebounds per game. Junior guard Knox Hellums averages 5.6 points and 2.0 rebounds per game, while freshman center Jacob Germany averages 4.9 points and 3.8 rebounds per game.
Senior forward Byron Frohnen, who is poised to break the UTSA career starts record on Saturday vs. Middle Tennessee, has made all 122 starts in his career. He leads the team and ranks fifth in C-USA with 7.0 rebounds per game, adding 3.9 points.
Middle Tennessee (5-17, 1-8 C-USA) has lost 13 of its last 14 games with a two-point win over Southern Miss in Murfreesboro, Tenn., coming last Saturday. The Blue Raiders opened the year with three straight wins, including a 73-70 result at Lipscomb, but have lost 15 of their last 17 games.
The Blue Raiders are led in scoring by C.J. Jones, who averages 16 points and three rebounds per game. Senior guard Antonio Green – who ranks second in the NCAA in career 3-pointers made among active players – averages 12.7 points and 3.9 rebounds per game. Jayce Johnson adds 9.4 points and five rebounds per game, while Reggie Scurry adds 5.1 rebounds per outing.
As a team, Middle Tennessee is averaging 71.4 points, 36 rebounds, 13 assists and 6.9 steals per game. Middle Tennessee is shooting 42.1 percent from the field and 33.4 percent from distance, holding foes to 46 percent and 39.3 from 3-point range.
Middle Tennessee has won six of seven meetings between the two schools, with the series split 1-1 in games played in San Antonio. The Blue Raiders have won five straight games against the Roadrunners, with UTSA's lone win coming in the 2014-15 season at the Convocation Center.
In the lone meeting in 2018-19, Middle Tennessee posted an 89-86 win over UTSA on Jan. 17 in Murfreesboro, Tenn. The Blue Raiders built a big early lead in the game - owning a 45-31 margin at halftime - and were able to hold off a 55-point second half from the Roadrunners to post the three-point win. Donovan Sims exploded for 24 points to lead three MTSU standouts with 20+, as Antonio Green had 21 points and James Hawthorne had 20 points and seven rebounds off the bench. Middle shot 49.1 percent from the field and was 13 of 29 from 3--point range, making 22 free-throws. UTSA got 28 points from Jhivvan Jackson and a 24-point, 10-rebound effort from Keaton Wallace. Byron Frohnen had six points and eight boards, while Nick Allen added eight points and six rebounds. UTSA shot 42.5 percent from the field and 14 of 37 from distance, shooting just seven free throws.
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