Lamar explodes in second half, crushes UT-SA

[Guest abovetherim]

By Bob West

The Port Arthur News

BEAUMONT — Texas-San Antonio may still be trying to figure out where the runaway freight train came from Saturday night at the Montagne Center.

One minute the Roadrunners were leading, 36-35. Eleven minutes later they were trailing 63-40 on the way to getting run down 81-56 by Lamar University in the Southland Conference opener for both teams.

The Cardinals, in landing a 46-25 second-half haymaker, played about as close to perfect as a college team could. They wreaked all sorts of havoc with their defensive pressure, passed the ball crisply, made 19-of-32 shots, including 7-of-12 treys, and regularly had an appreciative crowd of 2,933 on its feet roaring.

Cardinal coach Steve Roccaforte, whose team has now won four of five to climb back to the .500 mark at 7-7, said he could only recall one comparable half in his two years at Lamar.

“Probably Southeastern last year in the second half,†he said. “We only missed four shots (actually five). But we played pretty good. We’ve played pretty good the last two games in the second half. I wish we could put that together for 40 minutes.â€

Best thing about this one is that seniors Darren Hopkins and Currye Todd officially came off the milk cartons as missing persons. Both played by far their best games of the season, with Todd hitting all four of his treys for a team high 16 points and Hopkins going 3-of-3 on three-balls and scoring a season-best 15 points.

It was much more than a two-man show, however. Matthew Barrow added 14 points and five assists and Lamar Sanders went 7-of-7 from the field on the way to scoring 15 points and pulling down eight rebounds.

Point guard Kenny Dawkins narrowly missed being the fifth Cardinal in double figures, but he had a season high eight assists to go with nine points.

The highlight-reel moment of the night, meanwhile, belonged to junior Justin Nabors, who delivered what may have the must spectacular dunk in the history of the Montange Center. Nabors, in the middle of a 28-4 run, roared down the left side of the lane, soared about 20 feet high and jammed the ball left-handed over a dazed defender.

“That should be on Sportscenter,†said Barrow with a laugh. “When he went up left-handed off the right leg, that’s pretty hard to do. He’s a natural jumper off the left leg. When you are jumping off the right leg and taking the left hand, you know you got bounce. That’s why everybody calls him the grasshopper,â€

“It was one of the best dunks I’ve ever seen in live action,†agreed Roccaforte. “But you are probably going to see more. He’s a quick jumper and very explosive.â€

What Roccaforte also hopes to see more of is the kind of relentless, high-intensity defense that turned the Roadrunners to mush in the second half. Lamar, during the 11-minute stretch it was blowing the game opening, forced five turnovers and limited UT-SA to 1-of-11 shooting.

“Our defense was the main thing,†said Barrow. “By us running, they were tired. They had their hands on their knees.â€

Roccaforte was in total agreement that his team wore down the visitors with defensive pressure.

“I think in the last two games our press has worn down the other team in the second half,†he said. “We have turned our intensity up. Sometimes it’s not changing what you are doing, it’s changing how you are doing it.â€

The setback dropped UT-SA to 6-8 on the season and 0-7 on the road. Three of their defeats were administered by Texas (58-37), Arkansas (67-42) and Oklahoma State (73-61). None of that trio was able to administer a more one-sided beating that Lamar.

In fairness to the Roadrunners, their second-half collapse pretty much coincided with the loss of 6-7 freshman point guard Travis Gabbidon. Gabbidon had 10 points and two steals when he left near the 16-minute mark with a badly sprained ankle.

Joey Shank sank 5-of-11 treys to lead UT-SA with 17 points.

Roccaforte’s club was so dominant its 19 second-half field goals were two more that UT-SA managed in the entire 40 minutes. Lamar also had more assists (21) than the Roadrunners had baskets. About the only thing the Cardinals didn’t dominate was the glass, where they were outboarded, 30-26.

LU wound up shooting 56.9 percent for the night (33-of-58) and 59.4 on treys (10-of-19). The combined 7-of-7 from Todd and Hopkins certainly helped.

Todd put on the exclamation point by burying bonus buckets on three consecutive possessions late in the game. Hopkins, who was 6-of-9 from the field and 3-of-3 at the line, sank two of his treys in the second half and later talked about overcoming his season-long shooting woes.

“I haven’t been playing so good but I’ve been keeping my head and getting a lot of support from my teammates,†he said. “They were telling me to just keep shooting, even though my shot has not been falling.â€

Lamar’s next SLC test will be a toughie. The Cardinals travel to Nacodoches to play 13-2 Stephen F. Austin.