KINGSVILLE, Texas – A pair of late go-ahead buckets from sophomore Jake Majors (Corpus Christi, Texas) and senior Dayante McClellan (Austin, Texas) provided the clutch points the Texas A&M-Kingsville men's basketball team needed to spring an overtime upset on the No. 12 Angelo State Rams, 77-75, on Saturday evening at the Steinke Physical Education Center in Kingsville, Texas.
This represents the highest ranked team defeated by the Javelinas since they knocked off No. 8 West Texas A&M on Jan. 8th, 2019. They're now 6-2 on the season while ASU suffers its first loss to fall to 7-1.,
A season-high five Javelinas scored in double figures, the first time TAMUK's done that since Feb. 15th, 2020 against Texas A&M International.
"A lot of guts, a lot of heart and a lot of mental toughness," said coach Johnny Estelle when asked what was the key to the win. "It wasn't about the numbers, this game was all about guts and the will to win."
The leading scorer for the Hogs was sophomore C.J. Smith (Mansfield, Texas), who put up 14 points and handed out a team-high four assists. McClellan finished with 13 points and seven rebounds, junior Sammy Brooks (Dallas, Texas) chipped in with 12 and senior Tre Flowers (Bryan, Texas) and freshman Marcus Jones (Cheneyville, Ark.) each added 11. Jones' eight rebounds were a team-high.
There were five ties and eight lead changes in a game where the momentum constantly swung back-and-forth and neither team led by more than eight at any point. The Rams quickly took a 16-9 lead, but a pair of buckets by Smith fueled a 12-0 run that allowed the Javelinas to leapfrog into a 21-16 lead. They would take a 30-26 advantage into halftime.
The Hogs would go ahead by as many as eight in the second half and still held a 63-57 advantage with under four minutes to go, but the Rams outscored the Javs 10-4 over the final 3:41 to even things at 67. Both teams put up shots in the final 30 seconds, but neither fell, sending the contest to an extra frame.
Two Paul Williams free throws gave the visitors the first lead of overtime and two more from Williams at the 3:18 mark put ASU ahead 71-68. Flowers brought the Javelinas to within one with a driving layup and Smith drove and scored moments later for a 72-71 lead.
Three more from the charity stripe by Williams allowed the Rams to gain a 74-72 edge, but Majors buried a go-ahead three from the corner with 80 seconds to play. ASU managed to tie the game with 32 seconds remaining, but the Hogs scored the game-winning bucket when Smith found McClellan under the basket and the senior forward tossed in the night's final basket. One more Javelina stop then sealed the upset and handed the Rams their first loss of the season.
"I'm very proud," said Estelle. "I can be a little on tough on [the players] at times because I want them to experience winning at a high level. That's my whole goal as a coach. They're only going to play this game for so long. We always say they're writing their legacy and this is a huge page in that book."
The Javelinas will have a short break before getting back on the court on December 18th for a road matchup against St. Edward's. Fans can keep up with Javelina men's basketball throughout the season by following @JavelinaMBB on Twitter and Instagram, liking Texas A&M University-Kingsville Men's Basketball on Facebook, subscribing to the Javelina Athletics YouTube channel and visiting Javelinaathletics.com. Watch your Javelinas live today on the Javelina Sports Network sponsored by Mendoza's Pharmacy.
Watch your Javelinas live today on the Javelina Sports Network sponsored by Mendoza's Pharmacy. Get the Official Javelina Athletics Mobile App today! Download on the App Store or Get It on Google Play to keep up with all the news, scores and updates of your favorite Javelinas
