| SPORTS
| NOVEMBER 29, 2005
Men’s Basketball
Mavs pummel Texas Wesleyan
Team jumps ahead early in home
victory, Thomas has another strong game.
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| The Shorthorn: Sara Bookout |
| Sophomore forward Myles Guidry
dunks after a fast break in the game against
the Texas Wesleyan Rams on Monday in Texas Hall. The Mavs
beat the Rams 78-64. |
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By Kevin
Bueker
The Shorthorn Sports Editor
After an initial push from cross-town rival Texas Wesleyan, the
Mavericks stepped up the tempo and their defensive pressure to win,
78-64, Monday night in Texas Hall.
The Mavs (3-3) held the Rams to 36 percent shooting en route to
their second straight win.
Senior forward Steven Thomas anchored the Mavs on both ends of the
floor as the team rallied from an early deficit to put the game
away.
“We came out and did what we needed to do for the victory,”
he said. “We knew they were a jump shooting team, and we took
that away from them.”
Coming off a 30-point game against UT-Dallas, Thomas scored 17 points,
grabbed 11 boards and had a pair of blocks, steals and assists.
The presence of sophomore center Jermaine Griffin and freshman forward
Anthony Vereen allowed Thomas to slide into his groove at small
forward.
“We moved him out to the three because he was handling the
ball and passing as well as anybody,” head coach Eddie McCarter
said. “We really have to get him going in order to be successful.”
Thomas began to roll early against the Rams, and the Mavs followed
suit. After five ties and seven lead changes in the first 13 minutes,
UTA controlled the rest of the game.
The Mavs first seized momentum as freshman guard Brandon Long swished
in a high-arching three-pointer for a 34-29 lead.
Senior guard Jarrett Howell danced away from a defender as he dropped
in another long-ranger, and Griffin slammed an emphatic dunk off
a lob pass by senior guard Brady Dawkins as the Mavs went on a nine-point
swing to lead 43-32 at the half.
McCarter said the team pulled away because the Mavs’ defense
knocked the Rams out of rhythm and gave the team’s offense
confidence.
“We’re playing so hard defensively that it affects us
offensively,” he said. “We just need to keep building
on our defense.”
With Thomas and Griffin turning away opponents in the lane, Vereen
went to work on the offensive end. He scored a career-high 15 points,
including 13 on six of seven shooting in the second half.
The interior play opened things up for the Mavs’ shooters.
Dawkins swooped past three defenders on his way to the hole for
a reverse layup to put the Mavs up 61-46. On the next possession,
he stroked a three from well beyond the arc to give the Mavs their
largest lead.
Dawkins said he was in a good rhythm, but said the whole team was
focused as the lead grew.
“We’ve grown up as a team,” he said. “We’re
not making as many mental errors.”
UTA sustained the lead over the last nine minutes and beat Texas
Wesleyan for the 12th straight time.
McCarter said the Mavs are still working on finding the right players
and making the right decisions, but he said he was impressed with
the Mavs execution.
“I really like our inside/outside game,” he said. “I
like the way we’re playing right now.”
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