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RAMS ON
WRONG END OF OVERTIME THRILLER
March 19, 2010
KANSAS CITY, MO: Friday’s Sweet 16 game was a classic
example of a game neither team deserved to lose. Texas
Wesleyan University (24-10), led by a 40-point effort
from senior guard Jamel White, took Oklahoma Baptist
(30-3) to the wire before falling 85-75 in overtime.
“I thought we took the best team in the country to the
wire and came up just a little bit short,” commented
head coach Terry Waldrop. “I am so proud of these guys
and their effort tonight. They did everything we asked
them to do. It just came down to a possession here and a
possession there.”
The Rams came out firing and jumped ahead of the third
seeded Bison 20-5. OBU chipped away at the margin and
took their first lead of the game at 35-34 on a
three-pointer from AJ Hawkins with 1:04 to play in the
first half. Neither team was able to score in the final
minute and Texas Wesleyan trailed by one at halftime.
White and Jeremy Smith each hit three three-pointers in
the first half and powered the Rams with 12 and 11
points respectively.
The two teams traded the lead on five straight
possessions to start the second half before a
three-pointer from White put the Rams on top 45-40. OBU
tied the game at 46 on a bucket from NAIA Player of the
Year candidate Nate Brumfield and garnered the lead with
a three from Garrett Steinmetz.
After the game saw three more tie scores, White gave the
Rams a 61-58 lead with a triple with 5:35 on the clock.
With 55 seconds to play, White converted a pair of foul
shots to put Texas Wesleyan ahead 67-65. Hawkins scored
on a jumper with 39 seconds to play, knotting the game
at 67.
The Rams took the ball with a chance to take the lead,
but OBU successfully denied White the ball, and Brian
Wanamaker’s desperation three missed its mark with seven
seconds to play. After both teams called timeout,
Brumfield’s shot from the baseline hit the side of the
backboard and the game went to overtime.
In the extra period, OBU got three’s from Steinmetz and
Tim Bowman and a three-point play from Brumfield to take
command at 76-69. Texas Wesleyan was unable to overcome
that margin and fell 85-75.
White, who added nine rebounds, was just five-points shy
of the Texas Wesleyan single game scoring record. He
went 13-for-29 from the field, 5-for-9 from long range,
and 9-for-11 from the free throw line. Smith finished
with 11 points. Brian Wanamaker (8 points, 11 rebounds,
7 assists) and Hector Mukweyi (9 points, 9 rebounds)
just missed double-doubles in the loss.
The Bison outshot the Rams 52%-33% from the floor and
got to the free throw line 33 times, compared to just 20
free throw attempts for the Rams. Texas Wesleyan held a
47-36 rebounding advantage and a 17-6 margin on the
offensive glass.
All five OBU starters reached double-figures in scoring
led by Bowman’s 19. The Rams defensive effort, keyed by
Jeremy Mayfied held Brumfield to 15 points, well under
his season average of 22.8 points per game.
“That’s as good a team as we’ve seen this year, and our
guys learned that very quickly tonight,” OBU head coach
Doug Tolin said. “Once the bracket is drawn up and the
tournament starts, those (seeding) numbers to the left
don’t mean anything.”
Texas Wesleyan finished the year with a 24-10 record and
their second consecutive Sweet 16 appearance. The Rams
won their third consecutive Red River Athletic
Conference Championship with a 16-4 record. The team
went 14-1 at home, giving them a 31-1 record in the Sid
Richardson Center over the last two years and 40-5 in
the last three seasons.
TEXAS WESLEYAN ADVANCES WITH 74-71 WIN
March 17, 2010
KANSAS CITY, MO: The Texas Wesleyan University men’s
basketball team (24-9) took a 74-71 win over Central
Methodist University (24-9) in opening round action at
the 73rd Annual Buffalo Funds-NAIA National Tournament
on Wednesday. With the win, Texas Wesleyan moves on to
the Sweet 16 for the second consecutive season.
The Rams came out cold, and did not hit their first
basket until Jamel White canned a jumper 2:57 into the
game. The Rams trailed by as many as 10, 23-13. However,
White kept his team alive by pouring in 17 points on
6-of-11 shooting, and Texas Wesleyan trailed 38-33 at
the break.
Central Methodist outshot Texas Wesleyan 50%-44% in the
first half, but Texas Wesleyan held the top three-point
shooting team in the nation to just one triple.
The Rams quickly cut the lead to one point at 38-37, but
CMU went to their horses, Lucas Dahl and Matt Sherman,
who poured in eight unanswered points to take a more
comfortable 46-37 advantage.
Texas Wesleyan continued to chip away and tied the game
at 49 when White capped a 13-3 run with a three. Two
minutes later, White hit another long range shot to give
the Rams their first lead of the game at 53-52 with 9:53
to play. The Rams ran that advantage to 66-57 with 3:33
on the clock, but Dahl and Sherman refused to go down
quietly.
Sherman buried his seventh three of the game make it a
one possession game, 70-67, heading into the final
minute of the game. With six seconds to play and the
Rams leading 72-67, Dahl took his first three-point
attempt of the season and the junior forward nailed it
to give CMU hope.
The Eagles fouled with just under four seconds to play,
and White hit one-of-two at the line. Terry Waldrop
called timeout before White’s second attempt and
instructed his team to foul with the three-point lead.
The Rams fouled with 2.2 on the clock. Edris Brock made
his first attempt and then intentionally missed the
second, but CMU was whistled for a lane violation. CMU
fouled on the ensuing possession and Darren Houliston
hit one-of-two to account for the 74-71 final score.
“So many things have to go right when you are down three
in that situation,” head coach Terry Waldrop said. “I’ll
take my chances with Hector [Mukweyi] and Mayfield to
rebound and defend in that situation.”
For the game, the Eagles outshot the Rams 48%-46%. Texas
Wesleyan dominated the glass, 35-24. The Rams hit
6-of-15 (40%) three-point attempts, while CMU went
8-for-19 (42%).
White led all scorers with 30 points. Brian Wanamaker
added 16 points and Jeremy Mayfield finished with 14
points and six rebounds in the win. Dahl led the eagles
with 28 points while Sherman finished with 23.
“The first game is always the toughest to win,” Waldrop
commented. “Any coach here will tell you that. They are
obviously one of the best three-point shooting teams in
the country, and they are extremely well coached. I’m
proud of my guys though. We have a lot of guys with no
tournament experience who played a ton of minutes
tonight. I think we gained a lot of experience and now
we have to get ready to play one of the best teams in
the tournament on Friday.”
The Rams advance to face third seeded Oklahoma Baptist
University in Friday’s Sweet 16. The Bison advanced with
a 96-72 win over Saint Xavier University. Friday’s game
is scheduled for a 4:30 p.m. start.
RAMS TO FACE CENTRAL METHODIST IN FIRST ROUND
March 10, 2010
FORT WORTH, TX: The NAIA has released the bracket for
the 73rd Annual Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I Men’s
Basketball National Championship. Unseeded Texas
Wesleyan University will take on 14th seeded Central
Methodist University at 8:45 p.m. on Wednesday, March
17.
The Rams received an automatic bid to the tournament
after winning their third consecutive Red River Athletic
Conference Athletic regular season championship. Texas
Wesleyan will be making its 11th appearance in the
tournament and fourth in the last five years. They hold
a 12-9 record in tournament play, and have one national
championship to their credit.
Texas Wesleyan has put together a 23-9 overall record,
including a 16-4 mark in RRAC play and a 2-6 record
against NAIA Tournament participants. They were ranked
as high as 10th nationally this season and were slated
18th in the final regular season NAIA Coaches’ Poll. The
team tied the school’s home court winning streak with a
55-47 win over Oklahoma City University and ran that
streak to 31 games before being stopped by conference
foe Texas College. Texas Wesleyan went 14-1 at home on
the season. The previous record of 23 consecutive home
court wins was set in 1941-42.
The Rams feature five All-Conference selections,
including 1st-team selection Jamel White who leads the
team with 21.2 points per game.
Central Methodist is making its sixth appearance in the
tournament after earning an automatic bid as the Heart
of America Athletic Conference regular season champion.
Head coach Jeff Sherman earned his third consecutive
HAAC Coach of the Year award after guiding the Eagles to
a 24-8 overall record. CMU posted a 17-3 conference
record and a sparkling 5-0 mark against tournament
participants. They have been ranked as high as 11th
nationally following a season long eight-game winning
streak in December and January. The Eagles were ranked
13th in the final regular season poll.
The Eagles feature two All-Conference selections.
1st-team All HAAC selection Matt Sherman leads the
nation with 124 three-pointers on the season. The 6’0”
senior also ranks third nationally at 46.7% from long
range while averaging a team-high 15.7 points per game.
Meanwhile 6’6” junior forward Lucas Dahl earned 2nd-team
All-HAAC and HAAC Newcomer of the Year recognition after
averaging 13.5 points and 8.3 rebounds per game.
The NAIA National Tournament is considered by many to be
college basketball’s toughest tournament to win. The
championship is a single-elimination tournament
featuring a field of 32 teams. All 31 games are played
on one court, Kansas City’s historic Municipal
Auditorium, in seven days, March 17-23. In 2006, the
27th seeded Rams shocked the college basketball world
when they won five games in a six day span to take the
National Championship. Last season, they advanced to the
Sweet 16 before being defeated by McKendree University.
RAMS PLACE TWO ON ALL-TOURNEY TEAM
March 6, 2010
WAXAHACHIE, TX: Following the Red River Athletic
Conference Men’s Basketball Championship game on
Saturday, the All-Tournament team was announced and two
members of the Texas Wesleyan team were among those
honored.
Jeremy Smith scored 29 points in the Rams’ two
tournament games. Jamel White scored 28 points while
grabbing eight rebounds and dishing out six assists.
As the RRAC Regular Season Champion, the Rams have
earned an automatic bid to the NAIA National Tournament
which begins March 17, in Kansas City, MO. Pairings for
the tournament will be announced on Wednesday.
Bacone College defeated Texas College 86-85 in overtime
in Saturday’s championship game. The Cinderella Warriors
who were seeded fifth in the RRAC advanced to the
National Tournament for the first time in school
history.
FIVE RAMS NAMED ALL-RRAC
March 4, 2010
FORT WORTH, TX: The Red River Athletic Conference
Champion Texas Wesleyan University men’s basketball team
placed five players on the All-Conference team.
Jamel White was Texas Wesleyan’s lone 1st-team
selection. White finished second in the Player of the
Year voting to Bacone’s Ronnie Battle and second in the
Newcomer of the Year voting to Our Lady of the Lake’s
Dionelle Rucker. At 22 points per game, White ranks
second in the conference in scoring.
Brian Wanamaker was Texas Wesleyan’s lone 2nd-team
selection. Wanamaker is averaging 11.7 points, 6.1
rebounds and 5.3 assists per game on the season.
Jeremy Mayfield, Hector Mukweyi and Jeremy Smith were
all Honorable Mention selections. The award was the
third of Mukweyi’s three-year career with the Rams.
Texas Wesleyan will play Bacone College in RRAC
Semifinal action on Friday. That game is scheduled for a
1:00 p.m. start at SAGU’s Full Life Center in
Waxahachie, TX.
RAMS SHOCK LIONS, 76-72
March 4, 2010
WAXAHACHIE, TX: The Texas Wesleyan University men’s
basketball team (23-8) staged a last minute comeback to
top hosting Southwestern Assemblies of God University
(11-20) 76-72 in quarterfinal action at the Red River
Athletic Conference Tournament on Thursday.
SAGU erased a 14-point Texas Wesleyan lead in the second
half and led 72-68 with 58 seconds to play before the
Rams stole the game away.
Texas Wesleyan started the game with a quick 15-8 lead
before the Lions used a 10-2 run to snag an 18-17 lead.
The Rams closed the half on a 9-0 run and led 35-24 at
the break.
A three-pointer from Jamel White just over two minutes
into the second half gave the Rams their largest lead of
the game at 43-29. The Lions used a 15-6 run to cut the
score to 51-49, and later took a 57-56 lead on a dunk
from Al Thompson. The Lions pushed ahead 62-58 and
maintained a four-point advantage heading into the final
minute of the ballgame.
With 41 ticks remaining, Jeremy Smith drilled a
three-pointer to bring the Rams back to life. Smith
stole the ball on the Lions next possession, and Brian
Wanamaker hit a pair at the line to give the Rams a
73-72 lead with 27 seconds to play.
After Texas Wesleyan got a defensive stop, the Lions
fouled and sent Hector Mukweyi to the line with 15
seconds remaining. Mukweyi knocked down both free throws
and put his Rams in command at 75-72. Mukweyi later hit
the front end of two free throws to cap the scoring at
76-72.
The Rams outshot the Lions 46%-43% and led 42-25 in
rebounding. Smith led the Rams with 19 points, while
White finished with 18. Mukweyi (17 points, 14 rebounds)
and Jeremy Mayfield (13 points, 13 rebounds) each posted
double-doubles in the win. All five SAGU starters
reached double-figures in scoring led by 19 points from
Ronald Horne.
“We did not play our best game, but we survived,”
commented head coach Terry Waldrop. “We will have to
guard much better on Friday, or we will get beat. I
thought Mayfield and Mukweyi dominated in the paint
today. It was good to see them both play well.
The Rams advance to play fourth seeded Bacone College in
Friday’s semifinal round. That game is scheduled for a
1:00 p.m. start at SAGU’s Full Life Center in
Waxahachie, TX
RAMS PUNCH TICKET TO KC!
February 27, 2010
FORT WORTH, TX: The Sid Richardson Center may never have
hosted a game with more on the line, and Saturday’s game
lived up to the billing. The Texas Wesleyan University
men’s basketball team (22-8, 16-4 RRAC) took a third
consecutive Red River Athletic Conference Championship
with a thrilling 87-85 win in the regular season finale
over Our Lady of the Lake University (19-10, 16-4) on
Saturday.
OLLU had already clinched at least a share of the RRAC
title; however, the Rams pulled into a tie atop the
standings with the win. After splitting two games in the
regular season, the number one seed in next week’s RRAC
Tournament as well as an automatic bid to the NAIA
National Tournament in Kansas City, MO, went to the Rams
on a tiebreaker. Texas Wesleyan split the season series
from third seeded Texas College while the Saints were
swept by the Steers.
The Rams got an emotional boost with the presence of
assistant coach Tim Bellmon. Bellmon is recovering from
a kidney transplant, and the team gave him an
autographed game-ball following the contest.
“This game was as good as advertised,” commented head
coach Terry Waldrop. “Tim gave us an inspirational lift.
We are fortunate to have the success that we have had,
and we were challenged this year like we never have
been. Our defense on Rucker was excellent, but some of
their other guys stepped up. We have been very good at
home and this was a game we had to have. What more could
you ask for from a college basketball game.”
After the Saints jumped out to an early 9-2 lead, the
Rams settled down and ripped off 19 unanswered points.
The Saints regrouped and cut the lead to two points,
28-26, on a dunk from Dionelle Rucker with 4:47 on the
clock.
Texas Wesleyan led 36-31, but OLLU closed the half with
a pair of free throws from Ricardo Zanini and a three
from Robert Martinez and the teams went to their locker
rooms tied at 36.
Texas Wesleyan made a key run midway through the second
half. Jamel White sparked a 12-0 run with a conventional
three-point play followed by a triple to give Texas
Wesleyan a 64-53 advantage with 10:49 to play.
Martinez cut the margin down to three points, 66-63,
when he hit a trey with 8:45 on the clock. The game
remained tight the rest of the way. White put the Rams
on top 85-78 with a tip-in near the two minute-mark, but
OLLU’s Curtis Bowens answered with a three.
With 43 seconds to play, Rucker laid the ball in to tie
the game at 85. The Rams ran the shot clock down and
White drilled a jumper with nine seconds to play. The
Saints’ Eddie Ortiz got a good look at a three at the
buzzer, but his shot was off the mark and the Rams
prevailed 87-85.
White led all scorers with 34 points, including 27 in
the second half. White added eight rebounds and eight
assists to an outstanding night. Hector Mukweyi added 17
points and eight rebounds for the Rams, while Brian
Wanamaker finished with 15. Martinez led the Saints with
26 points.
Texas Wesleyan outshot OLLU 59%-43% from the field and
led 37-25 in rebounding. Texas Wesleyan dominated the
paint to the tune of a 44-22 advantage in points in the
lane. The Rams also grabbed 12 offensive rebounds and
led 20-11 on second chance points.
As the number one seed, the Rams will take on hosting
Southwestern Assemblies of God University in
quarterfinal action on Thursday. That game will be
played at 1:00 p.m. in Waxahachie, TX, at SAGU’s Full
Life Center.
WHITE NAMED RRAC P.O.W.
February 22, 2010
FORT WORTH, TX: Texas Wesleyan University Jamel White
has been named Red River Athletic Conference Men’s
Basketball Player of the Week for the period of February
15-21. White shared the award with Dionelle Rucker of
Our Lady of the Lake University.
White, a senior forward from Brooklyn, NY, provided the
balance that has kept Texas Wesleyan at the top of the
conference with a 3-0 week. He scored 18 points, grabbed
eight rebounds and dished five assists in a 71-68 win
over University of the Southwest (NM) then racked up
totals of 23, six, and four in a 77-51 victory over
Wiley College (TX). White topped it off by coming within
one rebound of a triple-double with 33 points, nine
rebounds, and 10 assists for an 89-68 drubbing of Jarvis
Christian College (TX). He made 25-of-49 field goal
attempts on the week (51.0%) including 11
three-pointers. In addition to being tied for the
conference lead at 14-3, TWU is 20-7 overall.
Rucker, a freshman guard from San Antonio, TX, posted
averages of 25.5 points and 12.5 rebounds per game in a
2-0 week for the Saints. Rucker then recorded his
seventh double-double of the season on Saturday with 34
points and 17 rebounds to surpass USW, 85-70.
The Rams return to action tonight as they host Langston
University. That game is scheduled for a 7:30 p.m. start
in the Sid Richardson Center. |
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