Texas A&M - Kingsville Athletics

KINGSVILLE, Texas – A second-half beatdown and major production from the bench lifted Texas A&M University-Kingsville (2-0) over Chadron State College (0-2) 95-63, on Saturday afternoon at the Gil E. Steinke Physical Education Center.
 
After a tight first half that had Texas A&M-Kingsville down 39-37, the home team responded by dropping 58 in the second half, highlighted by a 16-0 run.
 
"We kind of went away from the game plan offensively and defensively in the first half, but we got on track in the second," said by head coach Johnny Estelle. I also believe [Chadron State] got worn down with our depth."
 
That depth went off for 53 points, led by Jacolby Harris who put up a team-high 16 points on 50 percent shooting. Kyren Block finished with 13 points and six rebounds, while Caelan Neal scored 11 points. Will West and Johnnathan Lindsey both gathered ten points tonight.
  
"Playing two games in less than 24 hours is a tough challenge but our depth really helped us get through it. We are a team by committee and I felt good about how we played."
 
The Javelinas and Eagles concluded the game shooting 52.3 percent, but the difference was in the 28 turnovers forced by TAMUK that translated directly to 41 points. The Hogs won the battle in the paint for the second consecutive game (46-34) and did work on the offensive glass, winning the margin 14-8.
  
First Half 
The Javelinas had a 15-point lead at the 7:07 mark of the half, but watched it get wiped away after an Eagle 17-2 run tied the game at 35 with just over a minute remaining to play. Jeremy Ruffin hit a step-back jumper with 19.3 tics on the clock, giving the Eagles their first lead of the game at 39-37, which also served as the score at the half.
 
The Javelinas logged nine assists on 14 field goals and knocked down five triples in the first half. Chadron State was an efficient bunch, shooting 63.6 percent from the floor and beat Kingsville on the boards 16-13. Christian Bambrook was a perfect 4-of-4 from the field for eight points and led the team with five rebounds. Will West had seven points in the frame and had two steals.
  
Second Half 
The Javelinas got their first lead of the half on a putback by Block with 13:49 on the clock, making the score 51-49. Byrd ignited the Hogs as he scored or assisted on six points in a TAMUK 9-0 run. Kingsville ran away with the game from that point on, jumping out to a 76-53 lead with 5:30 remaining in the game. The Hoggies ended the game on a 7-0 run in their dominant 95-63 win. 
 
Notable Stats 
- The Javelinas shot 60.6 percent from the floor in the second half.
- The Javelinas forced 28 turnovers with 16 of them being steals.
- Kingsville hit five triples in the first half and nine total in the game.
- Kyren Block shot five-of-five from the floor.
- Block's six rebounds led the team followed by Bambrook and Sumpter's five. 
- Will West finished with three steals to lead the team. 
- Cris Boleware provided good energy off of the bench scoring four points, leading the team with four assists, and tied with Derrick Byrd and Trey Sumpter with three steals. 
- Sumpter did not play his best offensive game but showed up on the defensive end with five rebounds and three steals.
- Chadron State had four players with ten or more points, starting with Michael Johnson (15), Jaisean Jackson (12), Walker Andrew (10), and Jeremy Ruffin (10).
- The Eagles have a 2-38 road record over the last 40 games. 
 
Texas A&M-Kingsville will have its first road game of the season this Tuesday, November 14 against St. Mary's University in San Antonio, Texas.

Become a member of the 6th Man Pack that features great benefits such as reserved chairback seating for home games and access to the 6th Man Pack Lounge at LSC doubleheaders for the 2017-18 season. The 6th Man Pack Lounge will be catered by Fatman's Meat Market. For more information on joining the team, contact the ticket office at 361-593-4030. 
    
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