Corpus Christi Caller Times Caller.com - Islanders upset Red Raiders

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Tuesday, December 19, 2000

Islanders upset Red Raiders
Forward Hicks scores 33 in 86-80 victory
By Mark Zuckerman
Caller-Times

Joe Don Buckner/Lubbock Avalanche-Journal

Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi forward Michael Hicks (left) sets to shoot as a Texas Tech player Mickey Marshall to defend him during the Islanders’ 86-80 upset of of the Red Raiders on Monday. Hicks scored 33 points and grabbed 7 rebounds in the game.

LUBBOCK-The casual observer might have questioned why Texas A&M-Corpus Christi walked into the United Spirit Arena Monday night confident it would walk out with a victory over Texas Tech.
   After all, this was an Islander team that had lost five straight games, had yet to win on the road this year and was facing an opponent from a major conference.
   Maybe the naysayers should have paid attention.
   Playing inspired, technically-sound basketball, A&M-Corpus Christi backed up its pregame statements and indeed marched out of town with a win, defeating the Red Raiders, 86-80, in front of a stunned Lubbock crowd for the biggest win in program history.
   "It's at the top," head coach Ronnie Arrow said. "Whenever you're able to beat a caliber of team like this on the road, it speaks for itself."
   Feeding of their strong showing two days earlier in an 8-point loss to Texas, the Islanders (4-6) controlled the way the game was played all evening. They led most of the way, and even when Tech (4-4) mounted a second-half rally to take a 79-77 lead with less than 2 minutes remaining, A&M-Corpus Christi responded as if it were the veteran team playing at home.
   "I think the confidence was from the way we played at Texas," said forward Michael Hicks, who was his usual self in posting a 33-point, 7-rebound effort. "We knew we were playing a Big 12 team. We knew we played well against Texas. If we played that way or better tonight, we knew we would win."
   Behind a superb first-half shooting effort (60.7 percent), the Islanders led by 10 at the half and extended the margin to 13 at one point. Tech responded, though, with a 10-0 run that knotted the game at 51 with 14:36 left.
   The game was nip-and-tuck the rest of the way, with 10 lead changes. A&M-Corpus Christi took control in the closing minutes, though, finishing on a 9-1 run.
   Down 79-77, Hicks took a nice entry pass from Lee Denmon and tied the game at 79 with an easy layup. On the following possession, Red Raiders guard Jamal Brown missed a 3-point attempt, and Islander freshman point guard Brian Evans (16 points, 8 assists) hauled in the rebound, pushed the ball down the court and passed to Hicks on the break. The 6-foot-5 forward nearly brought the house down with a thunderous dunk that gave the Islanders the lead for good.
   The game wasn't over yet. Raiders center Andy Ellis, who led the team with 21 points, made 1 of 2 free throws to make it 82-80 with 12.6 seconds left. Tech instantly fouled Evans.
   Evans, who earlier had shot an airball on a free-throw attempt, was harassed unmercifully by the arena crowd. But the freshman silenced the house by draining both free-throw attempts.
   "At first, I heard what one of the dudes said," Evans said. "But I blocked it out. This was crunch time, and I knew I had to buckle down."
   Down by 4 and needing a miracle comeback, Tech's hopes were dashed when Jayson Mitchell's 3-point attempt rattled off the rim, Pathe Diene rebounded, was fouled and hit both of his free throws to seal the deal.
   "We knew coming in they were a lot better than their record, and they showed it," said an obviously dismayed Tech head coach James Dickey. "We're giving up too many points. You can't give up that many points and expect to have an opportunity to win."
   A&M-Corpus Christi came out of the gates and played what had to have been its best half of basketball this season, jumping out to an 8-2 lead. An Andre Emmett jumper at the 14:17 mark put Tech up, 14-12, but the lead would be short-lived. Less than three minutes later, Evans nailed a jumper as the shot clock expired to give the Islanders an 18-16 lead.
   And that was before the hot shooting began.
   Arunas Drasutis, who saw just 1 minute of action Saturday at Texas because of a bad ankle, came back in top form, going 5 of 5 from the field in the first half, including three 3-pointers in a 3-minute span. The senir finished with a season-best 18 points.
   For the game, A&M-Corpus Christi shot 53.6 percent to Tech's 44.1 percent and outrebounded the Raiders, 33-31.
   Now after a six-game road swing, the Islanders finally head home with their biggest victory to date.
   "It's nice to see us coming together as a team," said Arrow, whose team hosts Portland State Saturday afternoon. "Last year it took us 19 games to do it. Now we have to use this as a stepping stone."


Staff writer Mark Zuckerman can be reached at 886-3747 or by e-mail at zuckermanm@caller.com

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