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The stark reality for UTSA was as clear as the sheet of statistics that Coach Steve Henson was scanning after the game.
The sputtering Roadrunners can’t win if leading scorer Jeff Beverly struggles.
Beverly’s foul trouble and his offensive malaise were the prime reasons why the Roadrunners stumbled to their seventh loss in their last nine games in an 83-73 defeat at North Texas Saturday afternoon.
Two quick fouls in the first 7½ minutes of the game sent Beverly to the bench. As the Roadrunners (11-16, 6-8) stumbled against the Mean Green’s zone, Beverly picked up his third foul with 3:12 left in the first half.
It meant Beverly was kept on the bench to start the second half. And when he finally returned to the lineup, the Roadrunners’ leading scorer clearly wasn’t in synch as he was limited to a season-low three points with 1-for-6 shooting and four turnovers to boot.
“There was no rhythm for Jeff at all,” Henson told the Roadrunners’ radio network after the game. “It’s hard for us to play good offense when he’s not playing a good game. His foul trouble and their zone bothered him and limited his minutes. It had a big impact on the game.”
Henson’s comments described his team’s struggles as the Roadrunners dropped their seventh game in their last nine games and their 14th loss in 15 road games.
When Beverly is held to single digits, the Roadrunners are 1-4 this season.
The struggling Mean Green lit up UTSA for 53.8 percent shooting and 61.5 percent in the second half. It was only the second time this season and first since a season-opening victory over Division III Sul Ross State on Nov. 11 that the Mean Green eclipsed 50 percent from the field.
It marked the third consecutive game – all losses – where opponents eclipsed 46 percent against the Roadrunners.
“We’ve got to get back to defending better,” Henson said. “It’s just been night in and night out the last two or three weeks that people have been shooting in the high 40s against us.
“Tonight, they shot 54 percent and that’s just not good enough. You’re not going to win games doing that. We’ve got to compete on the defensive end.”
UTSA has allowed opponents to blister tham for 49.4 percent from the field during the last three games. Before that, Roadrunner opponents were shooting at a 42.6 percent clip from the field.
The Roadrunners had particular trouble checking Shane Temara, who produced career-high 19 points and nine rebounds for UNT. His big game helped the Mean Green snap a seven-game home losing streak as they notched their second home conference win.
Offensive execution for UNT (8-18, 2-12) was particularly lethal down the stretch as it singed the Roadrunners for 14 baskets in their last 20 attempts over the final 15 minutes of the game.
Freshman guard George Willborn III was one of UTSA’s few bright spots as he produced a career-high 17 points off the bench. Henson particularly liked how Willborn got to the paint in his 20 minutes with 15 foul shots during the game. It was the most free-throw attempts by a Roadrunner this season.
“He did what more guys need to be doing,” Henson said. “He’s not settling for jumpers. He really just lowered his head and forced some calls and made the defense react to him. It was good to see, very good to see.”
Byron Frohnen produced his fourth double-double of the season with 17 points and 11 rebounds, Nick Allen had 12 and Lucas O’Brien chipped in with 11 points and seven rebounds for UTSA.
Despite playing in a zone, UNT notched 12 steals as the Roadrunners contributed 17 turnovers that the Mean Green turned into 19 points.
“Their zone bothered us to the effect that zones can have, in addition to forcing some shots that can kind of zap your energy,” Henson said. “We needed to compete on the offensive and move and cut and attack that zone. We turned it over with careless turnovers in the first half, weak plays. And, we didn’t guard at all in either half.”
Tgriffin@express-news.net
Twitter: @TimGriffinBig12
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