UTRGV Holds Off A&M-Corpus Christi at Buzzer in South Texas Showdown

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – It came down to the final possession, but UTRGV was able to escape with a narrow 76-74 decision over the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi men's basketball program Wednesday at the American Bank Center in the South Texas Showdown, presented by Rally Credit Union.
 
The Islanders (3-5) trailed by two with seven seconds left when they ran the length of the court, but a last-second shot from near the top of the key to tie it was just off the mark. The closely contested game featured six ties and eight lead changes.
 
The Islanders outrebounded the Vaqueros (3-7) by 20, but UTRGV shot .500 from the floor and limited the A&M-Corpus Christi to a .371 mark. The Islanders outscored the Vaqueros 14-0 in second chance points and only allowed UTRGV to grab one offensive rebound.
 
A&M-Corpus Christi garnered a pair of 20-plus scoring performances. Junior Dian Wright-Forde led the charge with a career-high 21 points, while graduate Lance-Amir Paul ended with 20 points. Junior Tedrick Washington Jr. also reached double-figures with 10 points.
 
Wright-Forde and Washington helped the Islanders outscore UTRGV 39-5 in bench scoring.
 

#1 IS ON🔥!!!!!!

Islanders take the lead#ShakasUp 🤙 pic.twitter.com/gzte1f16og

— Islanders Men's Basketball (@Islanders_MBB) December 7, 2023

Sophomore Stephen Giwa pulled down a game-high eight rebounds, while junior Garry Clark turned in a solid seven points and seven rebounds. They were two of 10 Islanders to record a rebound in the contest.
 
The Vaqueros played their starters for heavy minutes as Ahren Freeman notched 23 points and seven rebounds. Elijah Elliott logged 40 minutes and ended with 14 points and five assists.
 
A&M-Corpus Christi got off to a slow started and trailed 13-2 at the 15:02 mark. UTRGV's biggest lead was 19-6 with 11:17 remaining.
 
The Islanders started to make their move late in the first half. A jumper by Wright-Forde cut it to 19-11 and a lay-up by Giwa trimmed it to 25-19 with 7:54 to go. A lay-up by senior Dayne Prim made it 32-29 with 1:57 left.
 
A&M-Corpus Christi came all the way back to take the lead in the first half 33-32 on a pair of free throws by junior Shilo Jackson, but the Vaqueros scored on their final possession to carry a 34-33 edge at the break.
 
A back-and-forth second half was tied 37-37 when UTRGV went on a 7-0 run to go up 44-37 with 13:55 remaining. A three-pointer, plus three free throws by Washington evened it again 48-48 at the mid-way point.
 
The Islanders led briefly 56-55 after a drive by Wright-Forde at the 7:15 mark, but the Vaqueros answered with a three on the ensuing possession to go back up. UTRGV further increased its advantage to 70-63 with 1:14 left.
 
After a field goal by Wright-Forde, a steal and a pair of free throws by Paul closed the deficit to 70-67 with 32 seconds remaining. After the Vaqueros drew a foul and hit two free throws, sophomore Owen Dease drilled a three from the corner to make it 72-70 with 29 seconds left.
 
The Islanders had one last chance to tie or take the lead on the final possession of the game but UTRGV was able to make a stop in its full court zone.
 
The South Texas Showdown, presented by Rally Credit Union, is an annual rivalry series in which Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and UTRGV compete against each other in 12 sports, including twice in basketball. The Islanders lead the all-time series 5-2.
 
Up next, the Islanders will remain at home Saturday when they host Omaha at 3:30 p.m. at the American Bank Center.
 
NOTES
- A&M-Corpus Christi is now 226-109 all-time at home and 2-1 this year.
 
- The Islanders are now 17-13 all-time against UTRGV and 9-7 at home.
 
- At least seven different Islanders have grabbed a rebound in every game this year. A&M-Corpus Christi entered the game ranked first in the Southland Conference in nearly every rebounding category including rebounding margin, offensive rebounds, defensive rebounds and total rebounds. The Islanders outrebounded the Vaqueros 46-26 including 16-1 on the offensive glass.
 
- The 21 points by Wright-Forde were the most by an Islander in a game this year. He surpassed his previous career-high of 21 points against LIU and was coming off a 17-point performance in a 67-63 victory over UTEP.
 
- In the last two games, Paul is 18-of-20 (.900) from the free throw line. His 20 points were a season-high and marked his sixth double-figure scoring game of the season and fourth in a row.
 
- Clark entered the night ranked second in the conference in rebounding with 7.9 per outing and was near par with seven in the game.
 
- Washington tallied his second straight double-figure scoring game as he was coming off an 11-point performance in the 67-63 win over UTEP. He was a perfect 5-for-5 from the free throw line.
 
- As a team, A&M-Corpus Christi made a season-high 24 free throws on a season-high 31 attempts. The .774 free throw percentage was also a season-best.
 
- Prior to the game, A&M-Corpus Christi hung its 2022-23 regular season title, conference tournament title and NCAA Tournament banner.

They keep going up.#ShakasUp pic.twitter.com/8A6wDldUpH

— Islanders Men's Basketball (@Islanders_MBB) December 7, 2023

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#ShakasUp