Patriots Make It Three Straight With Win Over Ozarks
January 31, 2008

The University of Texas at Tyler men’s basketball team won its third game in a row by taking down Ozarks, 83-64, on Thursday night at the Herrington Patriot Center. The Patriots have averaged 50.3 points in the second half over the past three games.

Despite trailing by one at the half, UT Tyler continued its second half dominance by shooting 70 percent and scoring 51 points in the final stanza. The win marked only the second time in the nine-game series that the Patriots defeated the Eagles.

Senior Mike Smith (Etta, Miss.) notched his first double-double of the season, as he recorded 13 points and 10 rebounds off the bench. Senior Patrick Branche (Houston, Texas) led all scorers with a game-high 16 points, while junior Anthony Reese (Longview, Texas) followed Branche with 15 points of his own. Senior Brandon Weasby (Houston, Texas) and sophomore Hakeem Kareem (Houston, Texas) rounded out the five Patriots in double figures with 11 points a piece. Kareem’s brother, Ozarks senior Habeeb Kareem (Houston, Texas) and junior Jeremy Clark (Richmond, Texas) each had 11 points to lead the Eagles.

The Patriots now stand at 9-10 on the year and 8-6 in the American Southwest Conference’s East Division. Ozarks is now 8-9 overall and 5-8 in league play.

The Patriots will play their penultimate home game of the season on Monday night at the Herrington Patriot Center when they host UT Dallas at 7:30 p.m.

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