EDINBURG, TX-The men’s basketball teams from The University of Texas-Pan American and New Mexico State University staged a shootout worthy of the old west at the UTPA Fieldhouse Monday night.

When the smoke cleared, the Broncs were the last team standing, winning, 100-86 before a near-capacity, season-high crowd of 4876.

Senior guard Mire Chatman (Garland, TX/South Garland HS/Southwestern Christian JC) was the leader of the Broncs. He made 15 of 28 shots from the field, six of nine from three-point range, and collected eight steals while scoring 44 points.

Chatman began his run in the first half, when he hit a pair of jump shots to help cut a six-point Aggie lead in half with 12:08 left before halftime. Later in the first half, he gave the Broncs the lead for good when he scored 14 UTPA points in a row on four three-pointers and a pair of free throws, lifting the Broncs from a 29-28 deficit to a 42-36 advantage with 6:55 to play in the first half. And he added 17 points in the second half, punctuating his performance with a steal and a layup followed by a steal and a dunk to give UTPA a 98-82 advantage with 2:26 to play.

It seemed like neither team could miss in the first half. UTPA made 66.7 per cent of their shots from the field, while NMSU connected on 61.3 per cent, and the first half ended with the Broncs ahead, 58-52.

NMSU came right back after the break. The Aggies used a three-pointer by Eric Channing, dunks by James Moore and Brandon Mason and Channing’s jumper to pull within one, 64-63, with 14:40 remaining. But the Broncs then outscored NMSU, 23-11, taking an 87-74 lead with 6:48 left. Junior forward Jon Nubine (Oklahoma City, OK/Putnam City North HS/Carl Albert JC) ignited the run when he connected on a pair of layups. Junior forward Andrius Sakalys (Vilnius, Lithuania/M.Dauksos HS/Eastern Oklahoma State) followed with a pair of free throws, Chatman added four free throws and two layups, and Sakalys finished with two jump shots and a trey. The Aggies used Chris Jackson’s layup and Brandon Mason’s three-pointer to once again close the gap, but Chatman responded again, and the Broncs put the game out of reach.

Chatman’s performance gave him 90 points in the Broncs’ last two games, and the 44-point performance tied him with Bruce King for the ninth best single-game performance ever by a Bronc. Sakalys added a career-high 22 points, making eight of 11 from the field. Senior center Marcus Quinn (Midwest City, OK/Choctaw HS/Eastern Oklahoma State) added 10 points, junior forward Terrell Hill (Carnegie, OK/Carnegie HS/Seward County CC) grabbed eight rebounds, and junior guard Kevin Mitchell (Copperas Cove, TX/Copperas Cove HS/McLennan CC) had a career-best 12 assists.

Channing led the Aggies with 33 points, while Moore and Mason added 13 apiece. 

“This means a lot to our team,” said UTPA Head Coach Bob Hoffman. ”We had all kinds of people step up and make plays. Terrell rebounded like a wild man, Andrius stepped up and made some great shots, and another mark of how well we played was that even with Mire having 44 points, we had 21 assists. That’s a huge stat against a quality opponent, and one of the reasons we won. Kevin had 12 assists, and he really helped us get started early when we were struggling. He made a big three, and he made some great passes. I really thought that we did a good job on them, even though Channing made shots with guys in his face. Andrius was tough to stop, because he got the ball off so quickly. And what can you say about Mire? If he isn’t the player of the week with these two games, I just don’t know what to say.”

The game marked the fourth time UTPA scored 100 or more points this season. That’s the most times the Broncs have scored 100 points in a game since the 1977-78 season, when they broke the 100-point barrier 14 times.

With the victory, UTPA improved to 19-8. NMSU dropped to 17-9, and saw their six-game winning streak come to an end. UTPA will return to action when they visit Lipscomb in the second game of a doubleheader Thursday at 8:00 p.m. The Lady Broncs will meet Lipscomb in the 6 p.m. opener.

MBBNMSU021202