SAN ANTONIO – UTSA earned its second-straight victory on Thursday night, defeating fifth-ranked Charlotte, 78-73, on Senior Night in the Convocation Center in front of 1,249 fans.
UTSA (10-21, 4-16 C-USA) won its second-straight contest for the first time since November, giving the Roadrunners three wins in their last five contests. Charlotte (18-12, 9-10 C-USA) became the second team to have two 20+ point scorers against the Roadrunners but it wasn't enough as UTSA snapped the 49ers' four-game win streak.
Jacob Germany recorded his ninth double-double of the season, scoring 17 points and pulling in ten rebounds. Today's double-double gives Germany 25 for his career. Japhet Medor led all Roadrunners with 22 points, marking the seventh time the newcomer has gone for 20+ points in a game this season. Medor led all players with five assists and went 9 of 14 from the line on the evening. John Buggs III had another strong showing, recording his fifth-straight game scoring in double-figures. Buggs recorded four three-pointers to lead all players. Erik Czumbel got his third start of the season on Senior Night, pulling in a rebound and playing some lock down defense.
The Rundown
UTSA opened the game with a lineup that featured its two seniors, Germany and Czumbel, as well as Medor, Richards and Buggs. The Roadrunners raced out to a 13-6 lead in the first five minutes grabbing its largest lead, seven, of the first half. The next five minutes of action were dominated by the 49ers, as Charlotte rattled off an 11-3 run to retake a one-point advantage, 17-16. The 49ers and Roadrunners traded baskets until the under four media timeout, as Charlotte went into the final break of the half up two, 30-28. Medor knocked down a pair of free throws coming out of the break to tie the game up at 30 all. Charlotte came down and converted a layup only for Buggs to answer with a three ball, putting UTSA back up. The basket trading went on until the final seconds as UTSA forced a Charlotte miss, took the rebound the length of the court and laid it in at the buzzer to take a one-point lead into the half.
The two teams continued to trade baskets back and forth into the second half, as UTSA led the 49ers 50-48 at the under-16 media timeout. From there, the Roadrunners would uncork a 16-5 run to take a 13-point lead with seven minutes left on the clock. The 49ers were able to chip away at the deficit, eventually cutting it down to one with 2:43 left on the clock as UTSA led, 69-68. Buggs and Medor were able to put the game away for the Roadrunners as Buggs hit two big shots and Medor iced the game with some clutch free throws as UTSA escaped with a Senior Day win.
Up Next
After concluding its regular season slate, UTSA will await its next opponent, sitting idle on Saturday. The Roadrunners have locked in the 11 seed for the Conference USA Tournament next week in Frisco and will compete in the 8:30 p.m. game on Wednesday, March 8, evening.
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