KINGSVILLE, Texas –Spurred on by Junior John Mouton's (Missouri City, Texas) first double-double of the season and a season-high 14 points from freshman Darius Mickens (Willis, Texas), the Texas A&M-Kingsville men's basketball team shocked the No. 8 West Texas Buffs, 86-74, on Thursday night in Lone Star Conference action at the Steinke Physical Education Center in Kingsville, Texas.
This is the second win over a ranked team this season for the Blue and Gold, as the Hogs (5-7, 1-3) toppled No. 14 St. Edward's, 69-58, on Nov. 24th. This is the progam's first win over a top 10 school since downing No. 9 Tarleton State on Jan. 7th, 2017.
Mouton's double-double included 14 points and 10 rebounds and was the second double-double by a Javelina this season. He also contributed three assists and hit 5-of-6 from the free throw line.
For Mickens, this is the second straight game he's set a new season-high, after totaling 13 points against Angelo State on Saturday and he hit 7-of-13 from the floor. Junior Rashon Thomas's (Houston, Texas) night included 13 points and a trio of connections from beyond the arc. Another junior, Chauncey Thomas (Plano, Texas), tossed in 10 points and canned 6-of-8 foul shots, with more than one coming at the end of the game to help salt away the win.
On the defensive end, senior Robert Stevenson (Houston, Texas) snatched nine rebounds and helped keep WT's former first-team all-conference pick Ryan Quaid under wraps, holding the senior forward to only seven points on 2-of-7 shooting.
"These kids are very resilient," said coach Johnny Estelle. "We were in a similar spot two years ago when we were 0-3 and had Tarleton State coming in. I knew our kids were playing hard and working hard. I'm ecstatic for them because they put so much work in and I want them to reap the benefits. I also want to say thank you to our fans for coming out and supporting us tonight. I know this is the first time we've had two Javelina teams sweep a doubleheader against a pair of top 10 squads."
TAMUK started the game with a quick 8-2 run that included two free throws by Stevenson and a triple from Rashon Thomas, providing a lead the Hogs would hold for the majority of the half.
For nearly 10 minutes, the difference between the teams moved between four and nine points before the Buffs (15-3, 4-1) took their first lead. Trailing 28-19, coach Tom Brown's team crafted a 10-0 run. A triple from Jordan Collins at the 3:45 mark put WT in front for the first time, but the Hogs had another run in them before the first half buzzer.
TAMUK scored 12 of the last 16 points of the period and seized a 40-33 advantage going into the locker room. After a tip-in by senior Elton Dyer (Houston, Texas) restored the lead to the Javs, sophomore Jamell Bradley (Converse, Texas) hit a pair of free throws and senior Alex Mills (Laurens, S.C.) drained a three, making the score 35-31. The Buffs moved within two at that point, but a three-point play courtesy of Chauncey Thomas pushed the advantage back to five and Bradley added two free throws in the closing seconds for a seven-point lead.
Mickens scored the first basket of the second half with a layup and the teams then exchanged scores twice until the score read TAMUK 47, WT 38. Consecutive layups by the Javs pushed the difference between the squads to 13, the largest separation of the night.
The next nine points were scored by the visitors, as Joel Murray, Drew Evans and Eric Mosley contributed buckets during the spurt, which was broken by a Mouton layup. After both sides added to their total to make the score 58-53, a two from senior Jacolby Harris (Delray, Fla.) and another Rashon Thomas three upped the difference to 10 with 9:15 to play.
Over the next seven minutes, WT only managed to outscore their hosts 13-10, moving the score to 73-66, and they never got closer than six points. Following a layup by Stevenson, Mouton supplied the dagger with a trey and the Hogs cruised to their fifth win.
Saturday at 4 p.m. is the next time the Javelinas will be in action, taking on Eastern New Mexico at home. To keep up with Javelina men's basketball all year long, follow @JavelinaMBB on Twitter and @JavelinaSports on Instagram, like JavelinaMBB on Facebook and visit Javelinaathletics.com.
