ABERDEEN, S.D. - Texas A&M-Kingsville's men's basketball team fell in its road opener of the 2022-23 season 95-88 on Friday night to Northern St, at Wachs Arena for the teams' first game in the Dacotah Bank Classic.
"My overall feeling about the game is that I am so proud of these young men," said head coach Johnny Estelle. "We traveled 1,365 miles to play a very good team in a hostile home environment... Our guys gave their hearts like they do every day, but we came up short tonight. We can correct everything we didn't do well because of the character and competitive hearts of these young men."
The Javelinas (3-2, 0-0 LSC) held a narrow 39-38 lead going into the halftime break but were outscored 57-49 in the second half by the Wolves (4-2). The loss comes despite junior transfer Isaiah Payne who had a career night in his first start as a Javelina going for 26 points on 11-17 shooting from the field to lead TAMUK offensively. Four other Hogs would score in the double digits including Creighton Avery (12), C.J. Smith (11), Sammy Brooks (11), and Washington Kendrick (10).
"I was pleased with how everyone played for the most part," said Estelle. "For Isaiah, to have the game he did, it took the team to execute and continue to believe in him. That's what makes this team special."
The only player to outscore Payne from either of the teams was Northern State's Augustin Reede who shot an impressive 8-11 from beyond the arc and 9-12 from the field, and 5-5 from the line for a career and game-high 31 points.
The Javelinas held the lead at halftime thanks in large part to finding 20 points off the bench while holding the Wolves' bench to zero. However, the Wolves found a way to the charity stripe for 8 total shots while making seven as the Javelinas did not attempt a free throw at all in the first half.
Northern State would open the second half with a 14-4 run that saw three of Augustin's three-point field goals. From there, the Wolves would stretch their lead to 15 points at four different points in the second half.
"In the second half, our rotation was shortened," said Estelle. "We had to play guys a little longer than usual, but give those guys [Northern State] credit. They are a well-coached team that possesses some really good players."
However, with five minutes remaining the Javelinas would begin to turn it around as Kendrick Washington and C.J. Smith hit consecutive three-pointers to cut the lead to eight at 82-74.
With a minute remaining a layup and three-pointer by Smith and Payne cut the lead to four, but the Wolves would be perfect from the line down the stretch preventing all hopes of a comeback.
UP NEXT
Next, the Javelinas will take on the Golden Eagles of Minnesota Crookston (1-5) at 4 p.m. on Saturday to close out Classic play.
"Minnesota Crookston is a very dangerous team," said Estelle. "They have some talented interchangeable players...We will have to find the drive and will to win tomorrow with limited rest and prep time."
The Golden Eagles earned their first win of the season on Friday night with an 80-76 victory over Presentation.
To keep up with the Javelinas all season long visit javelinaathletics.com to find links to live stats and streaming information as well as a recap at the end of each contest. Fans can learn more about the Javelina men's basketball team 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.
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