Men's Basketball 1/26/2013 6:50:00 PM

Gray’s 21 helps TAMIU top Dallas Baptist

Box Score

DALLAS (January 26) – Johnel Gray turned in one his best performances of the season in a must win game for the TAMIU men’s basketball team, dropping a game-high 21 points and grabbing eight rebounds to lead the Dustdevils over Dallas Baptist University 71-61 Saturday afternoon.

The win was an absolute must have for the Dustdevils after Dallas Baptist upset St. Mary’s University 73-69 earlier this week, to pull even with TAMIU in the conference standings at 3-3. The Dustdevils are now tied with St. Mary’s for third in the standings at 4-3, while DBU and red hot UT-Permian Basin, who has won three of their last four conference games, remain one game back at 3-4.

Gray finished 4-6 from the field and was perfect from the free throw line knocking down all 11 of his attempts. In total the Dustdevils connected on 31-40 free throws (77.5 percent), a season high in both free throws made and free throws attempted.

“This game was the most important game of our season so far,” said Gray, “and every game from here on out is a must win. We have all bought in to Coach Weakley’s philosophy – trusting each other, knowing each other’s tendencies, and learning how to play all 40 minutes of each game. If we can keep this up I don’t see why we can’t come out of every competition with a win.”

It wasn’t until late in the second half when the Dustdevils finally created some space against the stingy Patriots. With TAMIU Leading 45-44 with less than 10 minutes to play, Damal Donaldson ignited a 9-0 TAMIU run scoring seven-of-nine points to give the Dustdevils a 53-44 cushion. The Patriots would surge back however, getting a three-point play from Jonathan Perry followed by a three from Cory Carden to cap a 17-6 run to put Dallas Baptist up 61-59 with 2:39 remaining.

Those would be DBU’s final points of the game as the TAMIU defense took control over the final two minutes. The Dustdevils forced three turnovers and caused the Patriots to miss their final five shots, all of which were three pointers. TAMIU closed the game on a 12-0 run hitting 10-12 free throws along the way to ice the game.

“Our guys knew this game was big and their preparation was fantastic,” said Head Coach Bryan Weakley. “They executed the game plan even when DBU made their run. We didn’t defend well on Thursday, so we knew that we needed to bring a better defensive effort to the court today. Johnel scored it well for us, but I was more pleased by his defensive effort and rebounding. If he
keeps working on these aspects of the game, he could be a tremendous all-around player.”

Jordan Clark and Matthew Culliver Jr. also scored in double digits for the Dustdevils, finishing with 13 and 11 respectively. Donaldson added nine points, while Kevin Jefferson Jr. finished with seven. TAMIU shot 18-39 from the field (47.8 percent) and 4-9 (44.4 percent) from three-point range. DBU was 22-45 from the floor (48.9 percent) and 7-20 (35.0 percent) from distance. The Dustdevils committed only 10 turnovers, while forcing the Patriots into 18.

TAMIU continues their four-game road trip next week, visiting Oklahoma Panhandle State and UT-Permian Basin. The Dustdevils will match up with the Aggies on January 31 in Goodwell, Oklahoma, before heading west to meet the Falcons in Odessa on February 2.

Print Friendly Version