Second Half Surge Propels Men’s Basketball To Win
November 30, 2009


The University of Texas at Tyler men’s basketball team used a blistering 65.5 percent shooting performance during the second half of Monday night’s American Southwest Conference contest with Schreiner, to rally past and beat the Mountaineers, 74-61, at the Herrington Patriot Center.

UT Tyler (5-1, 2-0) started slowly in the game by connecting on just seven of 25 shots in the first half, allowing the Mountaineers to carry a 32-22 lead into the locker room at half time.

However, in the second half the Patriots turned the tables on Schreiner (0-3, 0-1) and went 19-for-29 from the floor while holding the Mountaineers to just 27.3 percent in total shooting during the stanza.

A big part of the Patriots comeback was the 3-point shooting of senior Neal Welch (Farmer’s Branch, Texas). Welch went 6-for-11 from behind the arch on the evening, with five of those buckets coming in the second half. He ended the game with a team-high 20 points.

Sophomore Scooter Van Dyke (Mt. Pleasant, Texas) also played a key role in the win by knocking down 12 points in the final period. Van Dyke finished the evening with a career-high 17 points and a team-high seven rebounds.

Junior David Flannery (San Antonio, Texas) recorded a game-high 23 points to lead Schreiner in the contest, while junior Riley Battle (Waxahachie, Texas) added 13 to the Mountaineers cause.

On Thursday, the Patriots will begin a three-game road trip by traveling to Abilene, Texas to take on Hardin-Simmons in ASC action. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.

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