ALPINE, Texas — A game that was spent primarily at the free throw line by both teams saw the St. Mary's University Men's Basketball team defeat Sul Ross State 80-73 on Thursday night.
The two teams were whistled for 50 fouls and combined to take 65 free throws, as the Rattlers (18-7, 11-6) won their third-straight game. In fact, in both games against Sul Ross State in LSC action this season, St. Mary's made more free throws than field goals. In the first meeting on Dec. 6, the Rattlers made 29 free throws and 25 field goals. In Alpine on Thursday, StMU sank 28 free throws (36 attempts) and made 23 shots from the floor. The Lobos (4-18, 2-14) also made more shots at the free throw line than the field tonight, with 22 free throws and 21 field goals.
The Rattlers used a balanced scoring attack, with all 10 players who saw action scoring between four and 15 points, led by junior
Justin Britt (Goose Creek, S.C.) with 15. Eight of his points came at the charity stripe, as he was 8-for-11. Senior
Olaverr Camacho (Barberena, Santa Rosa, Guatemala) and sophomore
Lawyer Jones (Waco, Texas) each scored 10, putting Jones in double figures in the scoring column in three of his last four games.
Junior
JJ Walton (Tampa, Fla.) led the team with six rebounds, grabbing four on the offensive end of the floor. He also had two steals and a blocked shot to go along with his eight points. Senior
Eddie McPhee (Denver, Colo.) led the game with two blocked shots, and he chipped in eight points.
Freshman
Raken Vargas (Houston) scored the first five points of the game for the Rattlers en route to a career-high seven points on a perfect 3-for-3 shooting. He also snapped a seven-game scoreless streak, adding a steal in 13 minutes.
Antwonne Holmes had a game-high 26 points for the Lobos, making 11 at the charity stripe, while Camren Roper added 14 points and nine assists. Roper also played all 40 minutes in the game.
St. Mary's shot 50 percent for the game, 35.3 percent from the three-point line (6-17), and 77.8 percent from the free throw line (28-36). Sul Ross State shot 46.7 percent from the field (21-45), 42.9 percent from beyond the arc (9-21), and 75.9 percent at the line (22-29).
The Rattlers head to Silver City, N.M., to take on Western New Mexico on Saturday afternoon. The Mustangs defeated St. Edward's 88-77 on Thursday night, giving them a two-game lead on the Rattlers in the LSC standings for fourth place.
