SAN ANTONIO — The St. Mary's University Men's Basketball team continued to dominate at home, defeated MSU Denver 75-59 on Saturday afternoon to move to 4-0 on the season.
The Roadrunners (1-3) hit a three-pointer with 19:12 on the clock to take a 3-2 lead, but never led again as the Rattlers' defense limited them to five points from the free throw line over the next eight minutes to build a 17-point lead, 25-8, and they went on to win by 16 points.
A trio of Rattlers scored in double figures, led by junior
JJ Walton (Tampa, Fla.) with a season-high 15 points. Senior
Damani Claxton (Bronx, N.Y.) scored 12 and led the game with four assists, while senior
Sebastian Mendoza (Riverside, Calif.) chipped in 10 points, going a perfect 4-for-4 from the field and 2-for-2 at the three-point line.
StMU used defensive pressure throughout to force the Roadrunners into 20 turnovers, including three shot clock violations, and out-rebounded them 32-to-25. The Rattlers grabbed 16 rebounds on the offensive end of the floor, led by five from
Olaverr Camacho (Barberena, Santa Rosa, Guatemala), who led the game with eight total rebounds. St. Mary's turned the 16 offensive boards into 20 second chance points.
Senior
Eddie McPhee (Denver, Colo.), Walton and senior
Wayne Wiggins (Mansfield, Texas) each had two steals, as the Rattlers collected nine on the day. Wiggins added three assists and eight points, sinking 6-of-7 at the free throw line.
The Rattlers' 4-0 start is the best since the 1997-98 team began 6-0 and advanced to the NAIA Round of 32 with a 20-7 record.
St. Mary's continues the long homestand to begin the year, hosting Sul Ross State on Wednesday. Tip-off is slated for 3 p.m.
