University of North Texas Athletics
University of North Texas
La Sierra
NT Routs La Sierra With 18-of-19 Free Throws
12/2/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Box Score
Postgame Notes
LOS ANGELES – North Texas used near-perfect free throw shooting to snap its four-game losing skid and route La Sierra, 92-45, to open play at the Doubletree LA Westside LMU Centennial Classic on Friday afternoon.
The Mean Green (2-4) led by as many as 48 in downing the Golden Eagles (0-5), and nearly set the school and Gersten Pavilion record for free throw percentage. NT was 18-of-19 from the stripe, and missed only its final attempt with 1:05 left in the game. Still, NT’s 94.7 percent from the stripe will go down as the second-best outing in school history.
NT scored 92 points in the win, which are its most since a 107-87 win at Houston Baptist on Feb. 15, 2010. The 47 point win is the squad’s biggest since knocking off Cameron 106-53 (53 points) in the 2007-08 season opener.
Brandan Walton, a Los Angeles native, led the Mean Green in scoring with 14 point in his return to California, and earned LMU Centennial Classic Player of the Game honors.
North Texas owned the glass in knocking off LSU. NT out-rebounded the Golden Eagles 54-24, and its 54 rebounds are the squad’s most since it tallied 57 against Arkansas State on Jan. 10, 2009.
Chris Jones and Jordan Williams hooked up to give the Mean Green a quick 4-0 lead. Jones hit a pair of free throws and found Williams on the next possession for a fast-break dunk.
Roger Franklin hit a 15-foot jumper and a quick layup to extend that lead to 11-2 with 15:34 left in the first half. Franklin only needed 12 minutes to reach double-figures for a second straight game. The Oklahoma State transfer tallied a double-double at Texas on Tuesday, and gave NT a 28-14 lead midway through the first half on a layup.
The Mean Green went into the break on top 45-19 thanks to a 29-10 edge in rebounds.
NT opened the second half with a 19-5 run thanks to Alzee Williams. The sophomore, who tallied a game and career high at Texas on Tuesday, put in a layup and a quick 3-pointer to give him 11 points with 18:45 left in the contest. Williams finished with 13 points for his second straight double-digit outing.
North Texas will continue play in the LMU Centennial Classic against Columbia tomorrow at 7 p.m. CST.
