TYLER, TEXAS – Three Patriots scored in double-digit figures and the defense stepped up once again in the second half to lead UT Tyler to a 70-62 win over St. Mary's on Thursday night inside the Herrington Patriot Center.
 
Seniors Da'Zhon Wyche, Micah Fuller and Soloman Thomas kicked off their final regular season homestand as Patriots in style, as Wyche led all scorers with 17 and Fuller and Thomas went for 14 points apiece to help the Patriots extend their win streak to four straight. UT Tyler stiffened up defensively in the second half for the second contest in a row, limiting the Rattlers to just nine made field goals in the second half to pull away with the win.
 
That defensive pressure combined with a key 11-2 run midway through the second half allowed the Patriots to gain and the maintain a lead from the 13:01 mark and on after entering the halftime break tied at 34-34. Thomas scored 12 of his 14 points in the second half alone, while Wyche and Fuller combined for 25 of the 34 points for the Patriots in the first half.
 
The 11-2 run for UT Tyler started at the 13:01 mark with a lay-up from Milan Szabo, and continued on to build the first sizeable advantage for either team with the Patriots up 58-50 with 10:04 remaining in the game. Both teams traded scoring runs in the first half, as the scoring differential never reached more than six for either side.
 
St. Mary's made their first run to get back in the ballgame shortly after, cutting the lead down to just two at the 58-56 mark. Three point makes from Thomas and Wyche helped extend the lead back out to eight with less than three minutes on the clock, before four unanswered free throws by the Rattlers cut the advantage down to four.
 
Thomas made what was arguably his biggest shot of the night on the ensuing possession, a three-point shot with 51 seconds left that drew the score back out to 67-60 in favor of UT Tyler.
 
Those three made three pointers were the only made three-point buckets of the second half for the Patriots, but proved to be the difference maker down the stretch as St. Mary's was limited to just 9-for-29 (31.0 percent) from the field in the second half. The Rattlers went just 1-for-11 in the second half for three, and couldn't capitalize on their eight offensive rebounds in the half.
 
A big factor for those offensive rebounds came as the result of Szabo and junior Paul Djoko fouling out in the second half as the Patriots leading rebounders with six rebounds apiece. The strong guard play of Fuller, Thomas and Wyche kept UT Tyler in the ballgame and eventually allowed the Patriots to move to 15-6 on the year and back above .500 in conference play with a 6-5 record.
 
Szabo and Djoko both added eight points to the effort, while Thomas finished the evening 5-for-9 from the field and 2-for-5 from three-point range. Wyche was 6-for-14 from the field and knocked down 4-of-8 from beyond the three-point arc.
 
36 of the Patriot points on the evening came from inside the paint, while St. Mary's totaled just 26 points inside. The Rattlers held the slight advantage in the rebounding battle (35-to-30), but couldn't find an answer for the stout second half defense for the Patriots down the stretch.
 
UT Tyler moved into a tie for sixth place in the league standings after the completion of Thursday night play in the Lone Star Conference with a winning percentage of .545 (6-5) in conference play.
 
The Patriots will recognize Eysan Wiley, Zaire Mateen, Soloman Thomas, Da'Zhon Wyche and Micah Fuller prior to Saturday afternoon's regular season home finale as part of the annual Senior Day festivities for the program. Tip-off for that contest against against St. Edward's is scheduled for a 4 p.m. tip-off.