SAN ANTONIO – The Roadrunners got a career-high 14 points from John Buggs III as they pulled away late from the St. Mary's Rattlers on Monday night, winning 66-59 at the Convocation Center.
UTSA (2-1) went into the half trailing the Rattlers 33-32 but ripped off a 14-0 run to start the second half, taking command of the game. The Rattlers (0-2) made things interesting, pulling within two points with a minute left but UTSA slammed the door and came away with the seven-point victory.
Outside of Buggs' career night, the Roadrunners also got a 14-piece from Jacob Germany who chipped in three rebounds and two blocks. Sophomore Josh Farmer made his first career start on the evening and contributed four points and seven boards. Japhet Medor again led the team in assists, dishing three dimes and tallying six points to go with five rebounds. The bench continued to provide a spark for the Roadrunners as both Aleu Aleu and Erik Czumbel chipped in seven points, helping the bench to 25 total points.
The Rundown
The Rattlers held control throughout the entirety of the first half as St. Mary's never relinquished the lead and went into half holding a 33-32 advantage. The Roadrunners shot 57 percent in the first half but couldn't grasp the lead as St. Mary's also shot well in the first half at a 48% clip. Buggs led all Roadrunners with six points at the break while Germany, Aleu and Czumbel each had five. The Roadrunners closed the first half on a 7-0 run.
UTSA closed the first half strong and began the second half even stronger as it extended its run to 21-0 to take a 46-33 lead. The Rattlers methodically chipped away at the lead throughout the second half, earning 18 second-half trips to the free throw line. The Rattler rally eventually came to a peak as they cut the UTSA lead to two at 61-59 with one minute remaining. From there, UTSA closed the game with five straight points to put things out of reach and claim its second victory of the season.
Stat of the Game
The Roadrunners shot 42% from beyond the arc tonight and limited the Rattlers to just 21%. The efficient scoring from downtown proved to be a major difference in tonight's contest.
Up Next
UTSA will be back in action this Thursday, Nov. 17, when it hosts fellow I-35 school Texas State. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. and the game will be streamed on CUSA.tv and broadcast on Ticket 760 AM.
- UTSA -
