SAN ANGELO, Texas – Despite 26 points from sophomore C.J. Smith (Mansfield, Texas), the Texas A&M-Kingsville men's basketball team watched a second half lead slip away in a 73-69 loss to the Angelo State Rams on Thursday night in Lone Star Conference action at the Stephens Arena at the Junell Center in San Angelo, Texas.
TAMUK falls to 11-8 on the season and they are 2-6 in LSC play. The Rams are 16-7 and 6-5 in the LSC.
"The game was two different halves," said coach Johnny Estelle. "I have to give ASU credit for their uncanny ability to get fouled and go 33-of-36 from the free throw line and 17-of-18 in the second half, very difficult to overcome. Give them credit, they fought back to get back into the game in the first four minutes. From then on, it was close until the end."
For Smith, 26 points represented a season-high and the fourth time in 2021-22 he's reached 20 points in a game. He also extended his streak of consecutive games scoring in double figures to six. Smith's line included four assists and two steals as well.
Junior Sammy Brooks (Dallas, Texas) contributed 10 points to the Javelina cause and also picked up five rebounds, tied with senior Dayante McClellan (Austin, Texas) for a team-high.
The lead changed hands a few times in the early going, but ASU opened up the first multi-possession lead at 13-8 with 13:20 to play in the first half. The response by the Hogs was a 7-0 run that included five points from Smith and put the visitors up by two.
Multiple trips to the free throw line helped the Rams move back ahead and they led by three at 25-22 with six-and-a-half minutes remaining in the period. The Javelinas re-took the lead when Brooks buried back-to-back threes and TAMUK would eventually score 10 straight points to go up by eight. Two more triples late in the half from Smith allowed the Javs to carry a 39-29 edge into the break.
A Jake Majors (Corpus Christi, Texas) jumper started the second half scoring, but the Rams came back with 11 straight points to get within one. After TAMUK widened its lead to six, ASU put together an 11-minute stretch in which they outscored the Hogs 23-7 and built a 63-53 advantage with less than six minutes to play.
TAMUK tried to rally, immediately putting up eight straight points to get within two and they cut their deficit to two points twice after that, but ASU free throws increased the margin each time. The Rams would be the beneficiary of a massive 36-to-15 discrepancy in free throw attempts, helping them hold on for a four-point win.
"I'm proud of the fight that our team played with tonight," said Estelle. "They had a resilient attitude and its a shame we didn't get the win. Words cannot express my gratitude for their efforts and attitudes. We'll bounce back."
TAMUK will next match up against UT Permian Basin in Odessa, Texas on Saturday at 4 p.m. 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.
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