KINGSVILLE, Texas – Behind a 16-point night from sophomore Jamell Bradley (Converse, Texas), the Texas A&M-Kingsville men's basketball team raced past the Texas A&M International Dustdevils, 57-42, on Tuesday night at the Steinke Physical Education Center in Kingsville, Texas.
Bradley's 16 points ties the TAMUK season-high for points in a game by one player. The Converse native hit 5-of-7 shots from the floor, including all three attempts from three-point range. He also collected five rebounds. Freshman Darius Mickens (Willis, Texas) contributed 11 points while also grabbing five boards.
Senior Robert Stevenson (Houston, Texas) led the Hogs on the glass with eight rebounds while adding four blocked shots. Juniors Rashon Thomas (Houston, Texas) and Chauncey Thomas (Plano, Texas) each passed out five assists for the Blue and Gold.
The Dustdevils seized the early initiative with 12 of the game's first 13 points. A three by Xabier Gomez sparked the run and Tom Higgins added another trey as TAMIU jumped on top 12-1, but the Javelinas quickly mustered a response.
A layup by junior John Mouton (Missouri City, Texas) touched off a run of eight straight points for TAMUK that brought team within three. Gomez provided an answer with a three and the Javs sliced the deficit back to four with two from Chauncey Thomas.
The scoreboard stayed frozen at 15-11 for nearly four minutes before Xabier Gomez hit a foul shot. Stevenson brought TAMUK within two with a three-point play and, after the teams traded buckets, another Stevenson foul shot put the Hogs down only one with 2:29 to play before half. Following another stretch of scoreless basketball, TAMUK took the lead for the first time thanks to a corner three courtesy of senior Elton Dyer (Houston, Texas) and the Javs would take that 20-18 advantage into the locker room.
Following a layup by Stevenson to start the second half, the teams exchanged threes, with the Dustdevils cashing in twice compared to once for the Javelinas and adding a layup by Gomez to move in front, 26-25.
At this point, the Javelinas took off on a rally that gave them the lead for good. Another triple by Bradley touched off the run, Stevenson and senior Alex Mills (Laurens, S.C.) added layups, as did junior Kyren Block (San Antonio, Texas) and Dyer and a 13-0 burst had staked TAMUK to a 38-26 edge.
The Dustdevils bounced back and quickly closed within six, but five points by Bradley immediately upped the difference to 11 and TAMIU would never close within single digits again. The Javelinas eventually stretched the lead out 15 before the clock ran out on their second victory of the season.
The TAMUK defense held the Dustdevils to a shooting percentage of 26.1 for the game, the lowest shooting percentage they've held an opponent to since Feb. 4th, 2015 against Eastern New Mexico, when the Greyhounds shot 25.5 from the field. The Javs, meanwhile, shot at a clip of 43.1 and won the battle on the boards, 35-32.
The Hogs were also in plus territory in turnovers, forcing 21 while giving away only 17, including just three after halftime. They also accumulated 11 blocks, their highest total since Feb. 23rd 2017 against Western New Mexico.
A string of three straight road games for the Javelinas begins on Saturday, when they play St. Edward's at 4 p.m. Fans can keep with Javelina basketball throughout the year by following @JavelinaMBB on Twitter, @Javelinasports on Instagram, liking Javelina Men's Basketball on Facebook and subscribing to the Javelina Athletics YouTube Channel.
