SAN ANTONIO – Coming off a short break in the schedule for semester finals, the UTSA men’s basketball team (4-4) looks to extend its winning streak to three games with Arkansas-Fort Smith (1-7) traveling to the Convocation Center for a mid-day matchup on Sunday, Dec. 10. The Roadrunners and Lions are meeting for the first time in Sunday’s 12 p.m. contest, which will air live on Sports Radio AM 760 The Ticket and be broadcast on ESPN+.
On the Air and the Web
Sunday’s game will tip at 12 p.m. at UTSA’s Convocation Center and will air live on the Radio with Andy Everett doing play-by-play live alongside Tim Carter with analysis. The broadcast will appear on Sports Radio AM 760 The Ticket and will feature a 30-minute pregame and 15-minute postgame show – available online at Ticket760.com or via the free iHeartRadio app.
To watch the game live, ESPN+ subscribers can catch the Roadrunners on the streaming platform. Karl Schoening (play-by-play) and Devin Brown (analyst) will be on the broadcast call.
UTSA Athletics will also provide LIVE STATS from the Convocation Center.
Men's Basketball Tickets:
UTSA Men’s Basketball Home Schedule
Single-Game Tickets
Direct Link: https://bit.ly/UTSATix
Single Game Adult $13
Single Game Military/Youth (ages 3-18)/Senior (ages 65+): $11
Students: Free Admission with UTSA ID, download tickets at goUTSA.com/studentlogin.
Promotions and Giveaways
UTSA Athletics wants fans to be ready for the holidays and Christmas sweater season with a giveaway of Christmas Sweater t-shirts to all fans, while supplies last. There were no games to mark Rowdy’s Birthday on Dec. 9, so we’ll be celebrating our beloved mascot’s birthday on Sunday at the Convo. He’ll be out and about dressed as Santa for plenty of photo opportunities.
Last Time Out
‣ The Roadrunners capped off last week with their second consecutive win and third in the last four, avenging an earlier loss at Lamar with an 86-83 win over the visiting Cardinals.
‣ As the fifth different player to lead in scoring this season, junior guard Isaiah Wyatt lit up the scoreboard with his career high of 27 points, logging a team season-high scoring mark thanks to seven three-pointers. In addition, Wyatt shot 50 percent from the field (8-for-16) while registering a 58.3-percent night from three (7-for-12). In addition, he was 4-for-6 from the line, grabbed six rebounds and made three assists – with one steal.
‣ It was a streaky game all around, featuring four lead changes, as UTSA led by double-digits and then weathered a late 10-point deficit – the Roadrunners storming back to recapture the lead with 1:36 remaining and fend off Lamar from the season sweep.
‣ The Roadrunners’ initial double-digit lead arrived as center Carlton Linguard Jr. knocked down a three, and forward Trey Edmonds rolled to the basket the next time down the floor, bringing the UTSA advantage to 12 with 11:29 to go before half.
‣ Coming down the stretch in the opening period, Lamar chipped away at the UTSA lead, outpacing the Roadrunners on an 8-0 run over a two-minute span that narrowed the advantage to just two points. However, Wyatt nailed threes on back-to-back possessions to carry the Roadrunners into the break with a 44-38 lead.
‣ The roles reversed coming out of the locker room after half, as UTSA came out of the break shooting just 16.7 percent after going for 41.9 percent in the first – making way for a three-minute, 10-3 Lamar run that culminated in Terry Anderson’s driving layup for the 48-47 lead change in the fifth minute of the second half.
‣ The teams proceeded to trade scores while Lamar built up a 10-point advantage with 7:29 to go. The game had yo-yo momentum swings in the second half, but Dre Fuller Jr. put away a clutch free throw set at 1:36 to grant UTSA its first lead in 14 minutes at 78-77.
‣ Linguard got a crucial three opportunity from the top of the key, draining another trey and providing UTSA a much-needed cushion. Christian Tucker put away four key free throws as the clock wound down to deliver the 86-83 UTSA win.
‣ Tucker ended the night with a career-first double-double of 13 points and 11 assists – the most dimes for UTSA in two seasons.
‣ Cleaning the glass, Fuller registered his third consecutive double-digit rebounding effort with 10 boards to go along with eight points.
‣ After kicking off the year with eight assists in the opener vs. Western Illinois, Tucker has kept a stranglehold on the top assist-dealing spot in the American Athletic Conference going the past five weeks at No. 1 in the AAC in assists (48) and assists per game (6.0). Tucker continues to stand steady in the national rankings, coming into this weekend at 33rd in the NCAA in assists and 20th in assists per game.
‣ Tucker also leads the Roadrunners with 12.5 ppg, snagging 2.9 rebounds and 8 steals on the year. His 2.82 assist-to-turnover ratio ranks sixth in the AAC and 62nd nationally.
‣ Fuller remains the rebounding leader at 7.9 rpg to complement 11.8 ppg, Adante' Holiman also averages 11.6 ppg with 2.5 apg.
‣ UTSA is averaging 78.1 ppg as a team, while shooting 40.8 from the field and collecting an NCAA 40th-best 41.12 rebounds per outing. The Roadrunners allow 11.8 turnovers per game to rank 120th nationally.
Series with Arkansas-Fort Smith
Sunday marks the first meeting between these programs and first meeting between these coaches. This is UTSA’s only non-DI opponent of the regular season.
Scouting Arkansas-Fort Smith
‣ The Zane Gibson era at Arkansas-Fort Smith is off to a challenging start as the first-year coach has the Lions entering the Convocation Center at 1-7 with an afternoon game in Odessa against UT Permian Basin on the Saturday schedule before heading southeast to San Antonio.
‣ The Lions head into Saturday on a four-game losing skid, averaging 78.5 ppg as a team, while shooting 45.5 percent from the floor. UAFS grabs 36.6 rpg and allows 14.4 turnovers per outing – all against Division II competition to date.
‣ Leading the way on the scoreboard, junior guard Lian Ramiro is averaging 13.1 ppg while shooting 50 percent and has 11 three pointers with 3.5 rpg – tying for the team lead with 13 assists.
‣ Sophomore guard Payton Brown leads the team with 17 three-pointers, hitting 40.5 percent beyond the arc to average 11.4 ppg.
‣ Rounding out the double-digit scorers for UAFS, senior forward Addison Wallace puts up 11.1 ppg with a team-best 7.0 rpg.
Up Next
After wrapping up a four-game home stand against the Lions, UTSA trades one Arkansas team for another and hits the road for a Dec. 13 game at Little Rock. The Roadrunners will make a quick return to the house before flying west for the fourth meeting against a Pac-12 opponent in the last five seasons via a Dec. 17 trip to Oregon State. The Roadrunners return home to the Convo on Dec. 21 to face Army West Point.
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