#10 RAMS SUFFER FIRST CONFERENCE LOSS
January 30, 2010

Box Score

SAN ANTONIO, TX:  The 10th ranked Texas Wesleyan University men’s basketball (16-5, 9-1 RRAC) suffered its first Red River Athletic Conference loss of the season at the hands of Our Lady of the Lake University (11-8, 8-2) on Saturday.  The Saints topped the Rams 85-66.

The Saints came out firing on all cylinders.  OLLU hit on a pair of threes as they raced out to a 13-4 lead.  The Saints led by as many as 11, 31-20, before the Rams caught their breath.  Texas Wesleyan ripped off a 12-3 run to close the gap to 34-32 before trailing 36-34 at the intermission.

The Rams came out strong in the second half, tying the game at 42 on a layup from Jamel White 2:39 into the period.  After a dunk from Hector Mukweyi brought the score to 45-44, OLLU went on a 9-0 run capped by a three from Eddie Ortiz to open a 54-44 advantage.

The Rams cut the margin back to single digits on three occasions, but the Saints continually answered the call.  OLLU hit each of its final eight free throws to pull away for the 85-66 win.

“We got out played by a team that is playing exceptionally well at home right now,” commented head coach Terry Waldrop.  “It’s a big win for their program, but our goals do not change. We have ten more to play, and hopefully we will learn from this game and get better.”

For the game the Saints outshot the Rams 43%-41% from the floor while hitting 91% (20-22) of their free throws.  OLLU also forced 25 turnovers that led to 29 points.

The loss snapped an eight-game winning streak overall.  Texas Wesleyan had also won 25 consecutive regular season games against conference opponents.

Jamel White led the Rams with 21 points.  Hector Mukweyi just missed a double-double with 14 points and nine rebounds, and Terrell Henry added 11 points for the Rams.

Dionelle Rucker led four Saints in double-figure scoring with 21 points to go with nine rebounds.  Robert Martinez added 18 points off the OLLU bench.

The Rams will return to action on Thursday, when they host Texas College.  That game will be featured as Think Pink Day at Texas Wesleyan.  Fans are invited to wear pink to the game in support of the fight against breast cancer.  That game is scheduled for a 7:30 p.m. start in the Sid Richardson Center.