SAN ANTONIO – With UTSA men’s basketball (4-5) taking a lead in the new series against North Dakota (4-7) via Friday’s game in San Antonio, an in-season home-and-home comes to fruition on Sunday afternoon in the Peace Garden State. Playing twice in 43 hours, the Roadrunners and Fighting Hawks will rematch on Sunday with a 2 p.m. tipoff at UND’s Betty Engelstad Sioux Center. The game will air live on UTSA radio and be streamed online via the Summit League Network.
On the Air and on the Web
Sunday’s rematch at the Sioux Center will be broadcast live on the radio with Andy Everett (play-by-play) handling the call. The radio broadcast will appear on Sports Radio AM 760 The Ticket and, as always, will feature a 30-minute pregame and 15-minute postgame show – available online at Ticket760.com or via the free iHeartRadio app.
The game will stream live on the Summit League Network for a subscription fee. Live stats from North Dakota can be found here.
About the UTSA Roadrunners
UTSA is looking for its first true road victory of the season heading into the rematch with North Dakota, after holding off the Fighting Hawks, 80-76, on Friday in San Antonio. The Roadrunners led by as many as 30 and controlled the lead for just shy of 30 minutes. UND narrowed the deficit over the final 10 minutes and got it as close as four points with 19 seconds to go – however, senior guard Primo Spears took care of business at the line to seal it.
On Friday, the Roadrunners shot a season-high 47.7 percent and saw eight players touch the scoreboard. Spears led the pack, registering 28 points on 11-of-17 shooting, along with three steals and two assists. It was his seventh 20-point outing in nine chances, moving him up to third in NCAA Division I with a 23.7 ppg average. Joining him in double figures, Damari Monsanto put away 4-of-9 from beyond the arc for 12 points, while Marcus Millender added 10 points with four assists and three steals. While the Fighting Hawks created more opportunities on the offensive glass, Jonnivius Smith swept off 10 of his team-high 11 boards on the defensive glass, also scoring six with two blocks.
Living up to their reputation for transitioning the ball, UTSA scored 21 points to UND’s five off the fast break, edging up to sixth in the NCAA with an average of 18.6 ppg off the break. Helping that effort, the Roadrunners also were effective with pressure on the Fighting Hawks, collecting 10 steals off 14 UND turnovers and staying steady at 11th in the nation for steals (10.2 spg) and 34th in turnovers forced per game (15.7).
About the North Dakota Fighting Hawks
The Fighting Hawks were able to spread the scoring around behind Dariyus Woodson’s 21 points, with four players in double-figures. Both Amar Kuljuhovic and Deng Mayar registered a 10-point, 11-rebound double-double, while returning star Treysen Eaglestaff scored 14 - Mier Panoam added seven assists. Both Kuljuhovic and Eaglestaff were Preseason Summit League first teamers.
North Dakota also met their reputation of slowing the game down and not moving in transition. The Fighting Hawks took advantage of their rebounding ability to extend possessions, bringing down a UTSA opponent-high 50 boards and logging 22 second-chance points. UND shot 38.8 percent from the field, with near half their shots coming from long range on a 31 percent average. North Dakota also struggled mightily at the line, shooting only 50 percent on free throws.
Up Next
The Roadrunners return to San Antonio for their final home game before the new year, Thursday, December 19 at the Convocation Center, with Southwestern Adventist heading down from Keene, Texas. UTSA will be hosting Hoops for the Holidays and the annual Teddy Bear Toss. That game is set for 12 p.m. as the front end of a double-header with the women’s team taking on UT Arlington at 4 p.m. Combination $10 tickets are available for the set of games, here.
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