Vaqueros make comeback, earn gutty win against Lions
EDINBURG — It wasn’t a pretty win, but when you’re playing in the Southland Conference, there’s no such thing as “pretty.”
The UTRGV Vaqueros (17-13, 13-8) didn’t quite look like themselves in the first half as they seemed out of sync here at The Fieldhouse as they hosted the East Texas A&M Lions (11-20, 6-15) in a conference matchup.
However, it was a tale of two halves as the home squad really hunkered down in the second and took the 63-55 dub to sit in third place within the SLC standings.
The visiting Lions came out hot like the weather down here in the RGV as they were led by Noah Pagotto who had 14 points in the first half.
You kind of had to be there as the crowd didn’t know whether to be impressed by the streak of shooting or frustrated for their home team as they found themselves down by 10 points after 20 minutes of play.
As the second half tipped off, it looked as if was going to be the same song and dance as the first when Pagotto slammed it with his right hand for this 16th point on the night.
However, true freshman Julien Gomez provided the much-needed second wind for the Vaqueros as he responded with a contact layup that hit the bottom of the net and with the foul on the Lions’ Tay Mosher.
After a missed three from Pagotto, who was starting to get cold from the field, Gomez answered again on the next trip with a three — which brought the game within six.
“Every time I get the ball, just when I shoot, I shoot with confidence and just visualize, ‘it’s already going in already,’” Gomez said after the game.
The boost then sparked fellow guards Jaylen Washington and Koree Cotton to get into the offensive mix. Washington showed prowess not only drawing in defenders on his drives, but kicking out to teammates on the perimeter. As for Cotton — who is a hybrid scorer — hit some key shots and also was put on the line to put some points on the board.
One of the most crucial ailments for UTRGV in the first half was the lack of free throws. In the first 20 minutes of play, the Vaqueros went 1-for-2 at the line. In the second half, with more aggressive play and welcoming of contact on layups, they went 11-for-13.
Gomez finished with a game high 14 points. Three other players for UTRGV finished with double-figures as well. Filip Brankovic had 13, Cotton had 12 and Washington had 10.
Head Coach Kahil Fennell said that it was a hard-fought game, one that was as ugly as a “rock fight.”
“It took us a while to get our footing,” Fennell said. “It took us a while to get our urgency going. So, the first half is brutal, and I was really proud of our guys for responding in the second half.”
The UTRGV Vaqueros will look to cap off an admirable season of effort against the Northwestern State Demons this week.
It will count as a Southland Conference game and the Vaqueros need the win to keep steady at the third-place spot in the standings ahead of the SLC tourney.
Similar to East Texas A&M, the Vaqueros lost the first matchup against the Demons back in January.