TAMCC Takes Advantage Of Road Weary Seahawks

SOUTH PADRE ISLAND, Texas – Senior guard Tim Green scored 11 of his 15 points in a crushing 20-2 run midway through the second half as Texas A&M-Corpus Christi cruised to a 97-64 men’s basketball victory over UNC Wilmington Saturday afternoon at the South Padre Island Convention Center.

The Seahawks, who wrapped up a five-game road trip and a four-game appearance in the South Padre Island Invitational, dipped to 3-4 on the season. The Islanders of the Southland Conference evened their record at 3-3 on the season.

It was the worst loss for the Seahawks since a 74-36 drubbing at Maryland on Dec. 27, 1997, in College Park.

Sophomore forward Dominique Lacy led the Seahawks in scoring for the second consecutive game with 16 points on 7-for-11 from the field and 1-for-2 at the free throw line. Sophomore guard Chad Tomko chipped in 15 points and sophomore guard Darryl Felder added 12 for the Seahawks, who lost for the fourth time in five games.

Green, who came off the bench, was one of four players in double figures for the Islanders, who shot 59.4 percent in the second half and 53.0 percent for the game. Kevin Palmer paced TAMCC with 22 points, while Green and Demond Watt added 15 apiece, and Jawan Nelson came off the bench to collect 14 markers.

TAMCC shot 47.1 percent in the first half, but heated up in the final period to pull away in the first meeting between the two clubs. The Islands went 19-for-32 in the last half, including 5-for-11 behind the arc, to turn the game into a rout.

It was tale of two halves for the Seahawks, who opened the game by shooting 53.6 percent in the first 20 minutes before cooling off to 30.0 percent after the break.

After inching out to a 39-38 lead at halftime, the Islanders, with Green leading the way, opened the final period with their suffocating 24-4 run, capped by a 13-0 spurt. Green’s fourth triple of the contest pushed the TAMCC advantage to 63-42 at the12:10 mark.

TAMCC’s largest lead came with 1:45 showing Antonio Topps sank the second of two free throws to give the Islanders a 94-57 bulge.

TAMCC owned a narrow 39-38 advantage at halftime behind Palmer’s 11 points. The Islanders pulled down eight offensive rebounds in the first 20 minutes and the lead changed 13 times.

Tomko zigged and zagged to score UNCW’s first nine points in the contest before a triple by Josh Sheets put the Seahawks ahead, 12-11, with 13:15 left in the first half.

TAMCC regrouped to carve out a six-point margin, 20-14, when Antonio Topps drained a trifecta from the right wing at 10:37. A three-pointer by Lacy gave the Seahawks the lead again, 35-33, with 2:13 on the clock before TAMCC closed out the half on a bucket by Palmer with 14 seconds left for its 39-38 edge at intermission.

Tomko was named to the All-Tournament team after averaging 17.0 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.8 assists in the four games of the eight-team event.

The Seahawks open a two-game homestand Wednesday with a 7 p.m. matchup against rival East Carolina at Trask Coliseum.

UNCW-TAMCC Notes: Junior guard Johnny Wolf, who entered the game averaging 19.9 ppg, went 0-for-11 from the floor…The Seahawks committed 19 of their 27 turnovers during TAMCC’s second half surge…Junior walk-on Daniel Mercer scored his first two points with 31 seconds left to play…TAMCC’s bench outscored UNCW’s reserves by a 45-14 margin…The Seahawks made just 7-of-27 three-point attempts…It was the fifth game in 11 days for UNCW…The Islanders had 16 steals in the contest…Sophomore guard Darryl Felder scored a season-high 12 points…Nine different players scored for UNCW.

UNCW Vs. TAMCC Post-Game Quotes ; Nov. 29, 1008

UNCW Head Coach Benny Moss:

“We were just tired today. The guys played hard, but five games in 11 days is a tough stretch. We were tired and it showed in the second half.

“Johnny Wolf is just beat down right now. He will never go 0-for-11 again. I can tell you that.

“We sucked it up and competed as long as we could, but we broke down. Our effort was fine, but we missed three layups and a couple mid-range jumpers. We also gambled a little too much.

“I was very pleased with Dominique Lacy. He put up some very good numbers in the tournament and competed.

“We just have to put this behind us and get some rest. I’m not sure how much we’ll do leading up to the East Carolina game.”

- Courtesy UNCW Sports Information

-- Jesse Jones, CAPE FEAR SPORTS REPORT