CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – The Texas A&M-Corpus Christi men's basketball team came away with the nonconference tournament championship, completing a 2-0 weekend after dominating Le Moyne 82-61 Saturday in the Dugan Wellness Center to conclude the Island U Invitational.
The Islanders (3-3) got back to even on the season and did so by building a +22 advantage by the half that nearly stuck through the end as they ended with the +21-margin over Le Moyne (2-5).
It is the fourth game in a row that A&M-Corpus Christi netted over 80 points, doing so in every game since their season opener at #14 Purdue where they scored 73. All available student-athletes were able to contribute to today's effort, with everyone scoring at least one field goal.
It is also the second game in a row that the Islanders shot above .500 from the field, shooting a season-high 57.4 percent (31-for-54) on the floor. They have also shot above .500 in four games so far this year and move to 27-1 over the last four seasons with head coach
Jim Shaw on staff when doing so.
The Dolphins shot a respectable 42.3 percent, but the Islanders outscored them 44-28 in the paint and saw a higher shooting success from long-range with seven netted three-pointers compared to Le Moyne's three.
Leading the game today was senior
Garry Clark, who came away with the 17-point effort. It helped him secure the title of being the Island U Invitational MVP after he scored 15 points with eight rebounds in the first game of the tournament against UT-Martin.
Overall, he averaged 16.0 ppg off 63.6-percent shooting in addition to averaging 7.5 rpg to earn the individual award. He has scored in double figures in every game this season. Extending from last season, he has scored 10+ points in his last 12 games played.
Also making their presence known on the weekend were redshirt-junior
Owen Dease, senior
Jordan Roberts, and freshman
Damarion Dennis who were all named to the All-Tournament Team.
Today, Dennis especially showed out with his career-high 13 points after sinking three goals from beyond-the-arc. Dease averaged 10.0 points/game, 5.5 rebounds/game, and 4.0 assists/game this weekend. Roberts also averaged 10.5 points per game and shot over .600 from both the floor (63.6) and from three-point range (62.5).
The Islanders are now 3-0 at home this season.
The tournament begins a six-game homestand for the Islanders, as they will trade arenas next week and play at the American Bank Center Tuesday against Texas Lutheran and Saturday against Prairie View.
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