CANYON, Texas – Joel Murray didn't look like a freshman as he took over the second half as #16 West Texas A&M defeated Tarleton, 83-71, in front of 1,845 fans on Hall of Champions Weekend at the First United Bank Center. The freshman tied a career-high in points to lead the Buffs to their 18th straight home victory and avenge last season's loss to the Texans at the FUB.
THE BASICS
The Matchup: #16 West Texas A&M 83, Tarleton 71
Records: #16 West Texas A&M (18-3, 7-1 LSC), Tarleton (13-5, 3-4 LSC)
Venue: First United Bank Center
Location: Canyon, Texas
The Buffs trailed by as much as 14 with 3:57 minutes left in the first half before Ryan Quaid connected on his lone three-pointer of the contest to spark a WT run. Qua Grant did it all on the next possession with his second career block before beating the defense down the floor for the old-fashioned three-point play. Following a pair of free throws from the Texans, Brandon Hall would score five straight points to pull the Buffs within three, 37-34, at halftime.
Tarleton scored the first four points of the second half but it was all WT after that starting with Gach Gach's first three of the contest at 17:41. The Buffs continued to feel it from beyond the arc with Murray and Grant hitting three in consecutive positions to start a 13-0 run for the home team. Following another TSU turnover, Murray found a trailing Quaid for a monster dunk to give WT their first lead of the game. Gach continued to shoot better in the second half with a floater followed by a three to make it 55-48 with under 10 minutes remaining in the game.
Murray made his fourth and final three of the game at 8:36 to stretch the lead to 10, 63-53, followed by a three from Eric Mosley from the corner on a nice drive and pass from the freshman from Rowlett, Texas. The Texans were able to get into a rhythm on offense but were unable to stop the Buffs as the lead jumped to a game-high 15 on a free throw from Hall with under a minute left in the contest.
WT finished the game 30-of-68 (44.1%), 17-of-40 (42.5%) from three-point range and 6-of-11 (54.5%) from the charity stripe with 28 rebounds, nine steals and two blocks while forcing 19 Texan turnovers. Murray tied a career-high with 20 points going 8-of-13 from the floor including a career-best four three-pointers while dishing nine assists and three steals. Quaid registered his sixth double-double of the season with 13 points and 10 rebounds while tying a season-high with five assists. Grant added 16 points while Hall had 14 points and four assists.
UP NEXT
West Texas A&M will make the short trip to Portales, New Mexico on Tuesday, Jan. 22, for a showdown against rival Eastern New Mexico. Tipoff is set for 8:30 p.m. CT at Greyhound Arena.
