HOUSTON, Tex. – Saturday the Yellowjacket men's basketball team took on Trinity University, traveling to the Lone Star State for a pair of contests. The Tigers entered the contest ranked 11th in the D3hoops.com preseason rankings, finishing the 2023-24 with an overall record of 23-4.
Earlier this season, the Tigers faced off against fellow Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) team in Bethany Lutheran, downing the Vikings 99-82 in their regular season opener.
Marking the first meeting between the two squads, the Yellowjackets finished the first half in control but a late surge from Trinity helped them earn their third-straight win, defeating the 'Jackets 84-76.
Game Notes
- The game remained tight through the first ten minutes of play, beginning with both teams trading a pair of three pointers. Jacob Harvey drained the first for Trinity, while Andrew Kunelius (Caledonia, Minn./Caledonia) logged the first Yellowjacket trey.
- Andrew Beers (Slinger, Wis./Slinger) followed minutes later with a three pointer of his own, while T.J. Moberg (Champlin, Minn./Champlin Park) garnered an assist to come within two at 9-7.
- UWS grabbed a brief lead after six minutes had ticked off the scoreboard. Reid Johnson (Chatfield, Minn./Chatfield) took a feed from Joey Barker (Superior, Wis./Superior Senior) for a midrange shot before J'Vaun Walker (Rosharon, Texas/Manvel) finished a layup after receiving a pass from Barker, leading the Tigers 13-12.
- From here the Yellowjackets began to lead the offense. Walker and Barker each logged two points before Max Briggs (Woodbury, Minn./New Life Academy) nailed a shot beyond the arc to give Superior a six-point advantage at 22-16. Hayden Quimby (Menasha, Wis./Xavier) joined the scoring, taking a feed from Kunelius at the midway point of the half to log his first bucket of the contest.
- The Tigers began to crawl back into the game and shift momentum, but the Yellowjackets quickly recovered courtesy of Johnson and a three-point play from Walker. Trinity began to muster some late offense, cutting the deficit down to six at 41-35.
- After halftime concluded, the Yellowjackets held onto a lead for three minutes before the Tigers knotted the contest at 44-44. Back-to-back layups from Trinity saw them garner a five-point advantage, but Landen Thomer (Mosinee, Wis./Mosinee) hit a layup after securing a pass from Moberg, leading to the Yellowjackets tying things up at 53-53 with a long ball from Barker.
- Both squads traded points and the lead in the latter portion of the second half. After Briggs drew a foul and drained both his free throw attempts at 64-63, the Tigers implemented a strong offensive push that ultimately saw them win their third victory of the campaign by an 84-76 decision.
- The Yellowjackets had Johnson and Walker with 19 and 18 points, respectively, while Barker capped his day with 12. Barker led the defensive efforts after grabbing six boards.
UW-Superior caps its Texas trip tomorrow, taking on St. Thomas with a noon tipoff.
