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Women's Basketball Dalton Johnson

Patriots Head to Puerto Rico for Three Game Stretch

UT Tyler will head for an island lifestyle for a three games in three days trip that sees them take on a trio of teams from Puerto Rico.


Match Info Opponent Info
P.R.-Mayaguez vs. UT Tyler
PRM: 0-1,  | UTT: 1-1, 0-0 LSC
Tuesday, Nov. 15 | 12 p.m. CST
Mario Morales Coliseum
Guaynabo, Puerto Rico		 mayaguez
P.R. Bayamon vs. UT Tyler
PRB: 0-0 | UTT: 1-1, 0-0 LSC
Wednesday, Nov. 16 | 11 a.m. CST
Mario Morales Coliseum
Guaynabo, Puerto Rico		 bayamon
P.R. Rio Piedras vs. UT Tyler
PRRP: 0-1 | UTT: 1-1, 0-0 LSC
Thursday, Nov. 17 | 11 a.m.
Mario Morales Coliseum
Guaynabo, Puerto Rico		 rio piedras


SOLID START
 
UT Tyler played their first two games of the 2022-2023 season on Friday and Saturday, and came away with a 1-1 record with both games coming against regional opponents.
 
Friday's game was against CSU Pueblo and was the opening game of the Carpet Tech Classic in Lubbock, Texas. A strong balanced effort was the key to success for the Patriots as four players scored in double figures, but the story was the stifling defense that the Patriots played, holding the Thunderwolves to just 31% shooting from the floor in the game en route to a 63-48 win.
 
On Saturday, that same offense would carry over, as four more players got into double figures for the contest, but Colorado Christian was able to get hot from beyond the arc and stay hot, taking down the Patriots by a score of 71-62 and just surving a second half surge from UT Tyler.
 
REGIONALLY RANKED
 
The Patriots have opened up the 2022-2023 season ranked in a tie for seventh in the D2SIDA South Central Regional Rankings. This week's poll marks the opening poll, and the top spot is held by West Texas A&M. They are followed closely by Colorado School of Mines, and Lubbock Christian, Texas Woman's and Angelo State round out the top five.
 
A SOLID CORE
 
The Patriots got some solid offense from a core group of players over their first two games as Montse Gutierrez, Frances King, Destini Whitehead, and Tina Machalova each averaged double figures on the weekend. The quartet combined to shoot 45.7% from the floor in the two games and were responsible for all but one of the three point makes. Machalova is shooting 60% by herself from the floor and averaging 15.5 points per game. King leads the team in rebounding, averaging seven per contest. Gutierrez led the team in steals in 2021-2022, and she looks to repeat that mark as she leads the team in steals through two games. Whitehead has done it all, averaging 13.5 points per game while snagging the second most rebounds and leading the team in three point percentage.
 
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
 
This will be the first time that UT Tyler has made the trip to Puerto Rico in program history and it will be the first time the Patriots have faced off against Bayamon, Mayaguez and Rio Piedras.
 
The first contest will be against Puerto Rico-Mayaguez and the Janes are currently 0-1 on the season after a 64-46 defeat to Winona State. That was just their second contest since the 2019-2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic as they played just one contest in the 2021-2022 season and none during the 2020-2021 year.
 
The second of the three games will be against Puerto Rico-Bayamon on Wednesday. The Cowgirls have yet to play anyone this season but also played just one game last season and no games during the 2020-2021 season. Their lone game of the 2021-2022 season came against the Colorado School of Mines, who took the win by a score of 63-36.
 
The last of the three games will be against Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras, who stands at 0-1 on the season after dropping a tight contest to Winona State by a score of 62-54. The Jerezanas have also played just one game since the 2019-2020 season.
 
LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION
 
UT Tyler will play all three games at a neutral site in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico. That neutral site will be the Mario Morales Coliseum, which is home to the Guaynabo Mets of the Baloncesto Superior Nacional. The stadium is named for Mario Morales, a Puerto Rican basketball player who aided the Mets to three BSN titles.
 
NEXT UP
 
Following the trip to Puerto Rico, the Patriots will play two road games next week in the Natural State as they take on Southern Arkansas and Henderson State. November 21 at 6 p.m. will be the time for the contest against the Muleriders and November 23rd at 4 p.m. will be the time for the contest against the Reddies.
 
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