Senior Day Shellacking

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – Saturday was everything a senior day should be as Texas A&M-Corpus Christi stormed past UIW 81-64 on Stripes Court at the American Bank Center to guarantee the Islanders at least a first round bye at next week's Southland Conference Tournament.
 
For a second season in a row, the Blue and Green will finish no worse than second in the regular season standings. The Islanders (19-10, 12-6) needed a victory to assure themselves of at least an opening round bye at the SLC Tournament and the trio of Corpus Christi seniors made sure that was never in doubt Saturday afternoon.
 
Rashawn Thomas was his usual self, going off for 30 points in his final game in the American Bank Center. Thomas added five rebounds and five assists to cap a memorable senior day. He also rejected two shots, becoming the first Islander to ever reach 200 career blocks.
 
It was not just Thomas having fun on senior day as his two fellow seniors, Cole Martinez and Jake Kocher, each put on a show as well. Both recorded nine points on days uniquely their own. Martinez, knocked down 3-of-4 from beyond the arc, including a dagger as time expired in the first half. Meanwhile, Kocher sliced into the lane and flashed hit grit one last time for the home crowd.
 
"I thought our seniors just played like seniors do on Senior Day – they were fabulous," said head coach Willis Wilson. "Cole Martinez, as beat up as he's been, for him to come out and hit some shots tonight was huge. It really took some pressure off and opened things up on the inside for Rashawn. With Jake, you can't saw enough about his hustle, his determination, his fight and grit. He does all the kind of dirty jobs and he does it with a body that's pretty beat up. He and Cole were both here for those six-win seasons and it seems like a while ago, but that was the foundation. "
 
"Those guys know where we've come from," continued Wilson," what it took to get to this level and they're going to leave quite the legacy for this basketball program. Then Rashawn, you can't say enough about him. He's our all-time leading scorer, rebounder and shot blocker. Tonight was a night he scored a lot of points, but he also had six assists. It was a night it seemed they didn't have a lot of answers for him.I just really excited and happy for those guys."
 
After a see-sawing first half, Martinez triggered the inbound from underneath the basket with 3 seconds to play in the half. He found Thomas who took the ball to the wing, spun back and found Martinez all alone in the corner. The triple gave the Islanders a 39-31 advantage at the break. It was never that close again.
 
The Islanders raced out on a 14-3 run to start the second half, building a 19-point lead by the 15:50 mark. Joining the fun in the second half, junior Ehab Amin scored 11 of his 21 points on the night and added six second-half boards en route to his fifth double-double of the season.
 
A&M-Corpus Christi never let UIW within arm's length again as the Islanders shot 19-of-34 from the field in the second half. The Blue and Green finished the day shooting 54-percent while holding UIW to just 41-percent on the other end.
 
 
CHASING A CHAMPIONSHIP
 
A year after reaching the Southland Conference Championship game, the Islanders will look to take the next step and win their first crown in a decade next week at the Merrell Center in Katy. Tickets for the 2017 SLC Tournament are on sale now through the Islanders Ticket Office at (361) 825-2255.