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RIO GRANDE VALLEY\u00a0\u2013 The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV)\u00a0Vaqueros men’s basketball team fell battled with the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders, as part of the South Texas Showdown, presented by Rally Credit Union, but fell 63-59 on Saturday at the UTRGV Fieldhouse.\u00a0 Support UTRGV Men’s Basketball<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Become a Fan on Facebook<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Follow us on Twitter<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Follow us on Instagram<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Follow us on YouTube<\/a><\/p>\n Read Full Article
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\nThe Vaqueros (5-9, 1-4 SLC) got a game-high 15 points from sophomore\u00a0Jaylen Washington<\/a>, who also added seven assists. Junior\u00a0Filip Brankovic<\/a>\u00a0scored 14 points on 7-of-11 shooting while junior\u00a0Koree Cotton<\/a>\u00a0added 12 points with seven rebounds.
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\nThe Islanders (5-8, 3-2 SLC) got 11 points from Nick Shogbonyo and Sheldon Williams while getting nine points from Leo Torbor.
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\nAfter a first half that saw eight lead changes and five ties, the second half started with more of the same as Cotton opened the scoring with a jumper and then it was Evran who answered with a jumper of his own to tie the game at 30-30. After a layup from Brankovic, the Islanders went on a 6-0 run to take the 36-32 lead.\u00a0
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\nThe Vaqueros were held without a field goal for over six minutes before a three-pointer from Ricks made it 44-40 with just over 11 minutes to play. Brankovic kept UTRGV in the game with three-straight baskets that got them within 52-48 but the Islanders had an answer for each one.\u00a0
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\nWashington knocked down a floater and then got a put back bucket to get UTRGV within 60-59 with 1:19 left in the game. With just 12 seconds left, Washington came up big again with a steal and had a good look at the game-winner but went off the front end.\u00a0
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\nThe Vaqueros shot 39% (20-51) from the floor but were held to just 11% (2-19) from three-point range.\u00a0
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\nWashington got the Vaqueros going early scoring the first four points and then redshirt junior\u00a0Marshal Destremau<\/a>\u00a0knocked down a three-pointer to give UTRGV the 7-5 lead. After the Islanders went on a 6-0 run to grab the 11-9 lead, both teams exchanged points before a Washington layup gave UTRGV once again at 17-16 with 7:59 to play in the half.\u00a0
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\nThe Islanders answered with a 7-0 run, scoring four of those seven points from the free throw line as they took the 23-19 lead. After a jumper from Haire that gave Corpus Christi the 25-21 lead, Cotton started a 7-3 run with back-to-back buckets as both teams were tied at 28-28 going into halftime.
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\nThe Islanders gained three points in the showdown standings to tie it at 10 points apiece. The next showdown event will be the basketball games on Jan. 22 in Corpus Christi.\u00a0
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\nThe Vaqueros return to action on Jan. 5 when they host UIW at 6:30 p.m. at the UTRGV Fieldhouse for Community Heroes Day.\u00a0
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\nFans can purchase tickets online at\u00a0UTRGVTickets.com<\/a>.\u00a0Current UTRGV students receive free general admission with their student ID but will need to claim a ticket at\u00a0GoUTRGV.com\/StudentTickets<\/a>.\u00a0Fans can learn more about game day, including parking information, maps, and the clear bag policy, by visiting\u00a0RallyTheValley.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n
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