CANYON, Texas – Julius Brown scored 30 points for the third time this season and second time in three games as the West Texas A&M men's basketball team defeated the Patriots of UT Tyler, 91-79. The Buffs improve to 13-5 overall on the season and 11-1 in Lone Star Conference play while the Patriots fall to 8-8 overall, 4-8 in LSC play.
The Leaders
Brown led the Buffs with 30 points on 9-of-16 shooting, converting all nine free throw attempts. The senior also added four assists, one steal, and two rebounds on the afternoon. Three other Buffs reached double digits as
Addison Wallace trailed Brown with 16.
Larry Wise and
Damion Thornton scored 14 and 11, respectively.
How It Happened
The first half saw the Buffs get hot from three-point range early, jumping out to an early lead. The Patriots cut the deficit to three with 5:33 left before halftime, but Wise quickly responded with a three of his own. Wise's three kick started a 14-2 run over the next four minutes. WT and UT Tyler exchanged buckets over the final 1:42, allowing the Buffs to take a 42-32 lead into the locker room.
Coming out of halftime, the game plan remained the same for the Buffs. As WT looked to start a run, the Patriots answered back and kept the Buffs in check. UT Tyler had multiple opportunities to put the game within single digits, but WT shut down the Patriot offense. With just over eight minutes in regulation, UT Tyler found the run it was looking for. A 10-2 Patriot run brought the Buff lead down to five before a pair of free throws slowed the UT Tyler momentum.
Through multiple waves of offense by the Patriots, the Buffs stuck to what they do best, knocking down shots at crucial points in the game. After UT Tyler brought the game within five once again, Wise nailed a wide open three off a pass from Brown to extend the lead to eight with 2:38 left in the game. In the final minutes, the Buffs knocked down free throws and held off the Patriot comeback bid.
Inside the Box Score
- WT leads the all-time series 3-0, 2-0 in Tyler.
- Head coach Tom Brown moves to 3-0 against the Patriots.
- WT shot 45.6% (26-of-57) from the field, 45.0% (9-of-20) from deep, 88.2% from the charity stripe with 35 rebounds, 10 assists, six steals, one block, and 11 turnovers.
- UT Tyler shot 47.5% (28-of-59) from the floor, 38.9% (7-of-18) from the 3-point range, 69.6% (16-of-23) at the free throw line with 33 rebounds, 20 assists, five steals, two blocks and 14 turnovers.
- Zach Toussaint ranks 12th on the all-time scoring list with 1,196 points, sitting one point behind Mike Mitchell.
Up Next
WT returns to divisional play on Thursday, Jan. 26 with a road contest against Cameron at the Aggie Gym in Lawton, Okla. Action between the Buffs and Aggies starts at 7:30 p.m.
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