CANYON, Texas – On Tuesday night, the West Texas A&M men's basketball team won the program's fifth regional championship in program history in front of over 2,500 fans at the First United Bank Center in Canyon, Texas. The Buffs used a second-half surge to defeat the Colorado Mesa Mavericks, 88-76. WT returns to the Elite Eight for the fourth time under
Tom Brown and first since 2021.
The Buffs now await their seeding, opponent, and game time for the Elite Eight in Evansville, Ind.
The Leaders
Three Buffs reached double-digit scoring on Tuesday night led by a game-high 29 from
Larry Wise.
Zach Toussaint (17) and
Ahamed Mohammed (13) also ended their night in double figures.
Kieran Elliott pulled in a team-high nine rebounds while
Ryland Holt blocked two shots with nine points.
How It Happened
After WT opened the scoring with a three-point shot, Colorado Mesa responded with a 12-0 run to quiet the home crowd. The Buffs worked their way back into the game, cutting the lead down to five before the under-12 minute media timeout. With 10:17 to play, Holt found
Noah Pagotto for a layup to tie the game at 16. The Mavericks answered back, rattling off a 10-0 streak to take the lead back. WT brought the game back within four with two minutes to play, but Colorado Mesa took an eight-point lead into halftime.
The Buffs flipped a switch in the second half. After the Mavericks scored a bucket to stretch, a three from
Kieran Elliott brought the lead back to single digits. On the next possession, Colorado Mesa turned the ball over setting up a huge three from Toussaint. With the crowd behind WT, the Buffs and Mavericks exchanged blows with WT cutting into the lead. A Toussaint layup with 15:15 to play put the Buffs on top for the first time since the first half. Buff Nation came to life on a Mohammed three with 9:40 to play, setting up WT down the stretch.
Going into the under-eight media timeout, the Buffs held onto a five-point lead with Colorado Mesa right on their heels. Although the Mavericks tried to fight back, the Buffs stood tall and forced tough shots, extending their lead throughout the time. With the under-four media timeout looming, Wise made a driving layup to push WT's lead to nine. Ahead of the timeout, Toussaint drew a foul before stepping to the line after the pause. The senior's free throws moved the Buffs' lead to 11. Down the stretch, WT continued to make free throws where the lead grew to as high as 14. Colorado Mesa converted a layup with 25 seconds to play, but a pair of free throws from Mohammed ended the scoring.
After the conclusion of the tournament,
Ryland Holt and
Larry Wise were named to the All-Tournament team with Wise receiving Most Valuable Player honors.
Inside the Box Score
- WT leads the all-time series, 4-0, 2-0 in Canyon.
- Head coach Tom Brown moves to 3-0 against the Mavericks.
- WT shot 47.7% (31-of-65) from the field, 47.6% (10-of-21) from deep, 88.9% from the charity stripe with 35 rebounds, 12 assists, four steals, four blocks, and 10 turnovers.
- Colorado Mesa shot 53.6% (30-of-56) from the floor, 40.0% (8-of-20) from the 3-point range, 53.3% at the free throw line with 32 rebounds, 15 assists, four steals, eight blocks, and 13 turnovers.
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