MINNEAPOLIS – The UTSA men’s basketball team (1-1) came up short in recovering from a deep halftime deficit at Minnesota (2-0) in the first road contest of the year, despite scoring 46 in a level second half and battling all the way to the final buzzer on Friday night at Williams Arena. Dre Fuller Jr. notched a team-leading 16 points and nine rebounds, scoring 12 in the second half to top four Roadrunners in double-figures during the 102-76 setback.
The early going pointed toward the makings of a shootout at Williams Arena, as UTSA trailed just 9-7 at the first media timeout. However, the Gophers launched into a 12-2 run that sparked a hot night from the field, furthered by plenty of opportunities at the line, as Minnesota scored on 14 of their first 18 possessions and the Roadrunners saw a five-minute scoring drought led to a 54-30 deficit at the break.
The Gopher momentum lingered for the first 10 minutes of the second half, but the Roadrunners refused to lay down, trading scores with Minnesota and outscoring the Gophers 23-13 over the next four minutes. Leading the charge to a 51.4-percent second half for the Roadrunners, Fuller went 4-of-5, including a pair of threes to register 12 second-half points. Point guard Adante' Holiman started to pick up steam, scoring two of his four threes in the second half, while PJ Carter attacked the basket for four second-half scores and nine points in the period. The Roadrunners trimmed the UM advantage to as few as 23, matching the opener’s overtime scoring total in Friday’s 102-76 loss.
With 16 points, Fuller reached a new career high, surpassing his 2022 UCF-days total against Memphis. He also finished with nine rebounds and two assists. Carter shot 50 percent on the night (6-of-12) to finish with several new personal highs. Exceeding his UTSA debut versus Western Illinois, Holiman was 4-for-6 from long range, making three assists and totaling 14 points. Rounding out four double-digit scorers, Trey Edmonds finished with 12 points.
The Roadrunners bounced back from 30.6-percent halftime shooting to fire off at a 51.6-percent clip in the second frame. However, UTSA still struggled at the line at 56 percent, while the Gophers shined with their many chances, putting away 28-of-34 free throw attempts.
Up Next
UTSA’s four-game road swing resumes on Tuesday in East Texas with the first of two matchups against Lamar this season. The Roadrunners and Cardinals will square off on Nov. 14 at 7 p.m. at Beaumont’s Neches Arena. UTSA closes the week with the Battle of I-35, taking on Texas State in San Marcos at 7:15 p.m. on Nov. 17.
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