Roadrunners turn back late bid from Cardinals
Dhieu Deing scored a gamehigh 26 points and UTSA led for all but about 30 seconds, beating Lamar 79-73 on Wednesday in the Convocation Center.
Deing hit 8 of 14 shots from the field, 3 of 7 from 3-point range and all seven at the free-throw line, sparking a Roadrunners offense that shot 47.2 percent. Jordan Ivycurry netted 13 points on 4-of-8 shooting, and Jacob Germany added 13 points on 5-of-8 shooting.
Davion Buster led Lamar (1-5) with 22 points behind 5-of-10 shooting from beyond the arc, but the Cardinals hit just 41.9 percent overall and 28.6 percent from outside.
UTSA’S defense was stout out of the gate, limiting Lamar to 15 points in the first 14 minutes to build a 10-point lead. But the Cardinals came alive with a 9-0 run in less than two minutes, pulling within 25-24 in the closing minutes before halftime. The Roadrunners closed the period on an 8-2 spurt to take a 35-28 lead into the break.
UTSA (4-3) scored seven straight points midway through the second half to build a 10-point lead, but Lamar’s Buster scored eight points in 70 seconds, including a pair of 3-pointers, to move the Cardinals within 57-55.
The Roadrunners slowly regained control of the game through the next few minutes, with freshman Christian Tucker scoring five points at the freethrow line in 30 seconds to put UTSA ahead by 10 with less than four minutes remaining.
Lamar responded, pushing to within three points in the final minute, but a layup by Deing and a free throw by Erik Czumbel helped the Roadrunners hang on.
UTSA coach Steve Henson rotated 12 players into the game before halftime, with freshman Lamin Sabally making his first start and JUCO transfer Aleu Aleu playing his first minutes of the season after missing the beginning of the year due to injury.
UTSA is back in action against Division II opponent St. Mary’s at 7 p.m. Monday in the Convocation Center.