January 5, 2008
San Antonio–St. Mary’s University shot 51 percent from the field, while holding Dallas Baptist University to just 28 percent shooting as the Rattlers rolled past the Patriots, 79-45, in the Heartland Conference men’s basketball opener for the Rattlers Saturday night at the Berg Center.
The Rattlers started the game with a 7-0 run and never trailed in rolling to the easy win. After DBU pulled to within four at 9-5, the Rattlers went on a 22-7 run to take a 19-point edge at 31-12 with 6:48 left in the first half. The Patriots never got closer than 12 points the rest of the way and St. Mary’s finished the game with a 14-2 run to complete the one-sided affair.
Rod Bellard (Jr., Beaumont) and Latez Williams (Sr., Hamilton, Ohio) led four Rattlers scoring in double figures with 12 points each. Corey Harbert (Jr., San Antonio) had 11 points, while Marcus Hill (Sr., Longview) added 10 points in the win.
As a team the Rattlers hit on 51.6 percent (32-62) of their shots from the field, including 58.6 percent (18-31) in the second half. The Patriots struggled from the field all night, making just 28.0 percent (14-50) of their shots from the field. St. Mary’s also outrebounded the Patriots 41-23.
Dwight Coleman (11 points) and Nick Michels (10 points) were the only Patriots to score in double figures in the game.
With the win the Rattlers snapped a three-game losing streak and improved to 6-6 overall. They are 1-0 in Heartland Conference play, while DBU is 3-8, 1-2. St. Mary’s will return to action on Thursday when they host Lincoln University in the second game of a women’s/men’s doubleheader at Bill Greehey Arena. The men’s game is scheduled to tip off at 7:30 p.m.