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Scoreboard

Stefan Wright
Kamille Donley
Stefan Wright puts up a shot against Rogers State.
58
Rogers State RSU 11-3, 3-3
60
Winner St. Mary's STMUMB 6-8, 2-4
Rogers State RSU
11-3, 3-3
58
Final
60
St. Mary's STMUMB
6-8, 2-4
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Rogers State RSU 30 28 58
St. Mary's STMUMB 23 37 60

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | RattlerAthletics.com

Big-shot Bryce! Smith's last-second shot lifts Rattlers past RSU

By Chad Peters | St. Mary's Athletics Communications

SAN ANTONIO — The wild celebration at midcourt Saturday told the story of how badly the Rattlers wanted this one.

In desperate need of a victory, St. Mary's Bryce Smith delivered just that for the Rattlers, firing a desperation 3-pointer from 25 feet with 1.1 seconds remaining to beat Rogers State 60-58 at Bill Greehey Arena. 

Smith's shot, a clean look from well beyond the arc that came after the possession had broken down, helped snap St. Mary's four-game game losing streak. 

But the sequence almost never even happened. 

Leading the Rattlers by one, 58-57, the Hillcats had possession to inbound the ball from under the Rattlers' basket with 15 seconds remaining. But in a play that changed the course of the game, Gemeny Givens poked the ball free on the inbounds pass, giving the Rattlers renewed life with 7.2 seconds remaining.

Then came Smith's shot, breathing fire back into the Rattlers' attack as they improved to 6-8 on the season and 2-4 in Heartland Conference play. 

Smith's big night ended with 11 points, four steals and four rebounds, while freshman Yanni Wetzell led all scorers with 18 points. Kriston Minor added 13 points in the victory. 

St. Mary's led for much of the first half, but could only watch as its offense dried up with Wetzell sidelined with two fouls. The result was a toothless finish the half, as the Rattlers managed just two points over the final 6:48. 

Rogers State took a 22-21 lead with 4:28 remaining, a lead it maintained through the latter portions of the second half. 

The Hillcats had no answer for Wetzell throughout the night, as evident by his 8-of-10 shooting percentage. But Wetzell was limited by foul trouble, playing just 21 minutes after finishing with four fouls, preventing the Rattlers from gaining much offensive rhythm. 

St. Mary's shot better than 60 percent from the floor in the second half after shooting just 28.6 percent in the first half. The Rattlers finished 44.4 percent for the night. StMU was out rebounded by one, 31-30, but forced 21 turnovers while turning the ball over just 16 times. 

St. Mary's will hit the road for the next two weeks, starting Thursday at Texas-Permian Basin. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. in Odessa, Texas.
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