KINGSVILLE, TEXAS – In a game that had a “Playoff” feeling, the Texas A&M-Kingsville men’s basketball team came out on top of visiting Lone Star Conference South Division rival West Texas A&M on Saturday night, 68-60 in the Steinke Center.  (box score)

The game swung back and forth throughout the contest, but ultimately it was the Javelina (14-6, 4-1) defense that was the difference.  The Javs held the Buffs (13-7, 3-2) to just two points in the final 5:30 of the game.  A 58-58 tie was broken when Flavio Milam (Killeen/Ellison HS) buried his second three-pointer of the night with 3:12 remaining.  In the final 1:14 the Hogs sealed the victory by making 5-of-6 free throws and Milam put the exclamation point on the win with a thunderous dunk with nine seconds to play.

In the first half, the Javelinas jumped out to a 9-1 lead only to see the Buffalos stampede back with a 16-4 run of their own.  The Hogs regained the lead midway through the first half when Adan Montalvo (La Joya/La Joya HS) hit back-to-back three-pointers on consecutive possessions giving the team a 19-18 lead.  The team took its cue from Montalvo and built up and eight point lead before settling for a 37-30 halftime lead.

In the second half, the Javs quickly took a 42-31 lead with 16:32 to play after a Wendell Mulkey (San Antonio/East Central HS) lay-up.  Over the next 8:30 the Buffs methodically closed the gap.  They knocked down a couple of three-pointers to get close and then Nick Burns drained a game-tying trifecta with 6:40 remaining.

After the teams traded buckets, the Javelinas stepped up their intensity on defense and closed out the victory in style.

Milam led the Hoggies with a career high 20 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the floor and he grabbed a team high seven rebounds.  Montalvo came off the bench to fire in 10 points and pick up three steals in just his second game back from an injury that sidelined him for seven games.  Chip Jones (Fort Worth/Univ. of Houston) added 10 points, five rebounds and four blocks while draining all four of his free throws attempts.  The team shot 51.0 percent from the field, connected on 5-of-8 three-pointers and was 13-of-21 from the foul line.  They forced 16 turnovers while committing 12 and grabbed three more rebounds than the Buffs.

The Buffalos were led by Bijan Dotson’s 19 points and eight rebounds off the bench.  He went 8-for-13 from the floor in just 21 minutes of action.  Burns led the regulars with 17 points and four assists.  The Buffs shot 40.4 percent from the field, made 7-of-22 three-pointers and were 11-for-19 at the foul line.

The win assures the Javelinas and head coach Pete Peterson of a sixth straight winning season, a school record.  The team will at worst remain in a tie for first place in the South Division and awaits the NCAA Division II Regional Rankings next week to see if they have moved into the top 10.

The Javs travel to Angelo State on Wednesday for another LSC South Division matchup.  Tip-off is slated for 8 o’clock.
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