TYLER, TEXAS – The UT Tyler men's basketball team will look to continue their winning ways on Monday afternoon with a match-up against St. Mary's at 2:00 p.m.
The Patriots have won four straight games dating back to Feb. 7, marking the longest winning streak for the program in Lone Star Conference play in just the second year competing in the league schedule. Two of those victories came in overtime fashion as the Patriots took down Cameron by an 85-75 final in overtime on Feb. 8 and UAFS in double overtime by a 96-91 final on Feb. 12 inside the Herrington Patriot Center.
Monday's game against St. Mary's will give the Patriots a chance to match the Rattlers with a divisional record of 1-2 on the year and move into a tie for third place in the South Division standings. UT Tyler's overall record now stands at 6-9 for the season, just two wins shy of last year's win total of eight games despite a shortened 2020-21 season.
The Patriots will have two-game series' with Texas A&M-Kingsville and Western New Mexico remaining on the schedule to finish up the 2020-21 season following Monday's meeting with St. Mary's.
A STREAK TO WRITE HOME ABOUT
To win four games in a row in the Lone Star Conference is impressive, but to win four games in a row in just the second season competing in the conference schedule while playing at such a high level of basketball is even more impressive for UT Tyler. The Patriots two wins against UAFS were continued examples of a Patriot squad that has simply found a knack for wearing down opposing teams, forcing turnovers, and then capitalizing on those mistakes.
Over the last four games UT Tyler has forced an average of 23.5 turnovers per game, which is three better than the current Lone Star Conference leader in forced turnovers West Texas A&M. The Patriots have posted the fifth best turnover margin in the league this season now at 2.20, and have averaged 10.0 steals per contest throughout the last four games.
Four different Patriots in
Da'Zhon Wyche (19.0 ppg),
Soloman Thomas (15.0 ppg),
Emanuel Gant (12.8 ppg) and
Micah Fuller (12.0 ppg) have all averaged double-digit scoring totals throughout the wins against Cameron and UAFS.
GANT GAINS RECOGNITION
Gant was named the Lone Star Conference Defensive Player of the Week for the second time this season last week for his performance in the Patriot's wins over UAFS and Cameron. He averaged 14.0 points and 7.0 rebounds in the three wins, including his fourth double-double of the year with 15 points and 10 rebounds in the 85-75 overtime win against Cameron.
The Phoenix, Ariz. Native followed up that effort with a 20-point, six-rebound performance against UAFS in the double overtime win against UAFS on Friday night. That 20-point output was the second highest scoring total of the season for Gant. He finished off his third and final game of the week with seven points and five rebounds in Saturday's 79-71 win over the Lions.
Gant is averaging 11.1 points per game for the season and ranks third in the Lone Star Conference with an average of 8.5 rebounds per contest.
WYCHE IS GOING WILD
As impactful as Gant was on the defensive side of the ball for the Patriots in the three wins against Cameron and UAFS, Wyche has been absolutely lethal in the offensive effort for the Patriots. Wyche has averaged 19.0 points per contest in the last four wins for UT Tyler, including a career-high 30-point effort in Saturday's win against UAFS.
He also totaled 26 in the win against Cameron on Feb. 8, and has now gone for 20 or more points on four separate occasions for the Patriots this season, raising his season scoring average to 14.1 points a game.
Wyche has done the majority of his damage in his four most recent offensive performances from behind the three-point line, going 13-of-30 (43.3 percent) from three-point range throughout that span. He also connected on 13-of-16 attempts (81.3 percent) from the free throw line.
INSIDE THE SERIES
St. Mary's got the better of the Patriots in the lone meeting historically between the two programs back on Nov. 23, 2019 by a 69-57 final.
SCOUTING THE RATTLERS
The Rattlers enter Monday with a record of 3-5 on the year, most recently competing on Feb. 12 with a 76-73 win against St. Edward's. The Rattlers other two wins on the year came against Texas A&M-Commerce and Angelo State.
Four different Rattlers average double-digit scoring totals, led by Miles McDougal, who leads the squad with an average of 13.8 points per game. Mamady Dijikine leads the team with an average of 8.0 rebounds per game, and also averages 12.5 points a contest.
