SEATTLE, Wash. – The UTSA men’s basketball team (2-1) was relentless in dismantling the homestanding Seattle U Redhawks (1-2) far from home on Wednesday night at the Redhawk Center. The Roadrunners saw four guards score in double figures as they ran away with the 86-59 victory for the biggest win on the road since the 2020-21 season – downing a Redhawks team that went 15-4 at home since the start of last season.
A big defensive start favored the Roadrunners with no score until the 18:30 mark when Seattle notched a pair of free throws, but a UTSA fast break countered with a layup to senior center Chinedum Okpukpara, quickly followed by West Seattle-raised senior Isaiah Watts knocking down a three to kick off a big homecoming and give UTSA its first lead. With Watts pulling down the subsequent defensive rebounds, senior KJ Tenner’s layup made it a 7-2 advantage just four minutes into the game.
With Will Heimbrodt’s jumper at 15:10, the Redhawks put their first field goal on the board and Jordan Bailes nailed a three to tie things up at 7-7. Their relief was short-lived, as senior Isaiah Coleman put the Roadrunners back in front just 15 seconds later, leading off three consecutive scoring possessions that sent UTSA in front 13-7. Two unanswered layups and a pair of free throws from Seattle and the Redhawks had evened it again at 13-all with 11:21 to go in the first.
Getting things moving again, redshirt senior Preston Turner fired off a key triple and UTSA rebuilt the lead to six off a trio of free throws. However, much like the VMI game, the heat turned up for the Roadrunners when junior guard Josiah LeGree drove from the three-point line and dunked over a host of Redhawks – earning the No. 3 spot on the ESPN SportsCenter Top Ten. Coleman collected a quick steal on the next Seattle possession and pushed the ball ahead to Watts on the fast break layup, forming the foundation for a 20-3 run over a 7:30 stretch. After going over three minutes without a score, Seattle snapped a 7-0 UTSA run with a pair of Tyler Boston free throws at 2:16, but UTSA proceeded to rattle off six more consecutive points before heading into halftime leading 41-22 – holding the Redhawks to 30 percent shooting with 12 turnovers in the first half.
Though Seattle got the first point of the second half, Tenner picked up right where he left off, spotting up on the wing for his first three of the night. Over the next six minutes, Seattle’s offense got on track and the teams traded scores. Redshirt junior Shey Eberwein added a three and Tenner was fouled on a perimeter shot to grow UTSA’s lead to 26 for the first time with 12:05 remaining.
The Redhawks managed a 9-0 run to trim the deficit to 16 with 8:40 on the clock via a Tyler Boston three, but the Roadrunners were quick to balance the scales with LeGree and Tenner tag-teaming the effort to grow the lead back to 23.
Freshman Mike Broxton Jr. delivered a layup at 2:33 to make it a game-high 28-point lead and the Roadrunners stayed steady to secure the final 86-59 result.
Making it his third double-figure game in as many chances, Tenner led all Roadrunners with 18 points while shooting 9-for-10 at the free throw line, in addition to providing five rebounds and three assists.
Watts went 5-for-10 from the field and 2-for-3 from the perimeter for 15 points, while grabbing four rebounds with two steals.
LeGree went 6-for-10 and 3-for-5 from three for 15 points, while Coleman was 5-for-6 for 14 points with a team-high seven rebounds.
On the night, the Roadrunners shot 50.8 percent (30-for-59) from the floor, 40.9 percent from three and were 17-for-21 at the free throw line. UTSA outdid Seattle on the glass, winning the 40-33 rebound margin, while also forcing 14 turnovers with eight steals.
The Roadrunners open the season 2-1 for the first time since 2022-23, and the first time starting the year 2-1 against three season-opening Division I schools since 2012-13.
Up Next
Sunday’s Battle for I-35 matchup with a 3-0 Texas State squad on ESPN2 will be at the Convocation Center with a 7 p.m. nationally televised tipoff.
- UTSA -