SHREVEPORT, LA: The 18th ranked Texas Wesleyan University men's basketball team moved to 12-0 with a statement win at No. 12 LSU-Shreveport (9-3). The Rams topped the Pilots by a score of 100-88.
The 12-0 start is the second best in school history, trailing only the 1940-41 team's 19-0 mark.
An early 11-8 LSUS lead was the largest of the game for the Pilots.
Jerrell Ellis then got hot and torched the highly touted Pilots for 24 points in the first half. The game reached its eighth tie score at 26-26 with 5:42 to play in the first half, but Texas Wesleyan closed the period with a 7-1 run capped by a three from Ellis with two seconds to play. That pushed the score to 46-37 at the intermission.
After warming up by shooting 51.5% from the floor in the first half, the Rams really got going in the second half shooting a lights-out 65.5%.
The Pilots made a run midway through the second half, cutting the margin to four points at 69-65, but a three from
Sam Akano sparked a 15-0 run that also included eight consecutive points from
Seandre Sadler. The lead swelled to as many as 21 points, 88-67, before the Pilots could recover.
For the game, the Rams outshot the Pilots 58%-42% from the floor. The Pilots became the first team to outrebound the Rams this season (47-34) including an exhibition contest at NCAA Division I Texas State, but the Rams led 50-36 in points in the paint and 22-18 in points off of turnovers. The Texas Wesleyan bench also outscored the LSUS reserves 47-10.
"I am really excited for this team," commented head coach
Brennen Shingleton. "They are tough and really developing a mindset of winning. More importantly, the ability to come into this environment in a tough road game and win is a testament to where I hope we are going. They deserve some time off, and then we will get back to work. I'm really proud of all of these guys at this point of the season."
Ellis finished with a season-high 29 points to go with five rebounds.
Merv Lindsay added 15 points and nine boards, while
Sam Akano scored 15 points as well. Sadler posted 10 points in just eight minutes on the floor.
The Pilots were led by Kyle Preston's 21 points. Lyndale James notched a double-double with 13 points and 18 rebounds.
The Rams will return to action on January 8, when they travel to Plainview, TX, for a Sooner Athletic Conference competition against Wayland Baptist. That game is scheduled for an 8:00 p.m. start. The Rams next home game will be the Burge Alumni Classic on January 10, as the Rams host Oklahoma Baptist University.
Ramblings
- The Rams have outrebounded their opponents by 11.1 boards per game this season and hold a scoring margin of +15.9.
- The Rams are 14-9 all-time vs. LSU-Shreveport, 18-18 vs. Wayland Baptist, and 6-9 vs. Oklahoma Baptist.
- Texas Wesleyan is one of two undefeated teams in the NAIA. No. 3 Hope International entered the day at 10-0.
