SAN ANTONIO – Trinity University Men's Basketball collected a resounding victory Thursday, 84-63, over the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point to conclude the 2022 Leslie Robinson Christmas Classic, collecting the first 30-point non-conference game in just-over three years from sophomore
Jacob Harvey (Huffman, Texas / Hargrave).
The Tigers (7-4) shot exactly 50 percent from the field (27-of-54) and from beyond the arc (8-of-16) as Harvey and senior
AJ Clark (San Antonio, Texas / Johnson) combined for a 15-of-24 (.625) clip overall.
Clark was the set-up man for multiple Harvey makes from beyond the arc on his way to a season-best eight assists along with 18 points. The San Antonio-native was also one of three Trinity players to lead the team with five rebounds, matched by sophomores
Braxton Barry (Houston, Texas / Westbury Christian) and
Ty Williams (Pearland, Texas / Pearland). Barry also provided a stiff defensive presence under the basket tying a career-high with three blocks.
Harvey's 30-point performance is the first by any Trinity player in over a calendar year and is one of six in non-conference contests since the 2013-14 campaign. Senior
Kaleb Jenkins (New Orleans, La. / Metairie Park) is the only other member of the 2022-23 Tiger squad with a 30-point game on his record, having done so in the COVID-19 shortened season that ended in a Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Player of the Year honor.
With the 2022-23 non-conference slate in the books, Trinity Men's Basketball will continue its four-game homestand on the other side of Christmas as it will host Schreiner University December 29, followed by Colorado College after the calendar flips to 2023.
The Rundown
In less than three minutes, the Tigers jumped out to a double-digit margin, 12-2, with multiple hustle plays capped off by a pair of Harvey free throws after drawing a foul in transition. Both Harvey and Clark already contributed five points by the end of the opening run.
A 9-0 run came after the Pointers drew back to a two-possession tally through seven more Harvey points, leading to a 15-point lead less than seven minutes in as the sophomore already reached 12 points.
After the Trinity margin rode around the upper teens through the heart of the first half, the fifth Clark assist—an
Abdullah Roberts (Houston, Texas / HCYA) three-pointer—marked the first 20-plus point margin, 43-21, with 3:30 to play.
Another Harvey three, featuring the sixth Clark assist of the first half, pushed the Tigers to its largest lead thus far in the contest, 50-23, headed into intermission. Harvey accounted for 23 of his career-high 30 points through the first 20 minutes, tying his previous best with 20 minutes to go.
A converted and-one from Roberts less than two minutes after the break handed Trinity its largest lead of the afternoon, 57-25, finishing off a 14-2 run that started before the final media timeout of the first half.
Harvey reached the 30-mark on his sixth three-pointer of the outing with nearly 11 minutes remaining in the contest, marking the seventh Clark assist in the process. The Huffman, Texas-native returned the margin safely over 20 points in response to an 18-4 rally from UWSP that dwindled the margin to 63-45--the closest the contest got following halftime.
As more faces logged notable playing time in the latter half, the Tigers set themselves on autopilot with the lead staying above 20 points for nearly the duration. Roberts became the third and final Trinity player in double-digits for scoring with over six minutes to go on a pair of free throws after the Tigers had already pushed UWSP into the double-bonus.
Up Next
Following the conclusion of its current four-game homestand with Schreiner (Dec. 29) and Colorado College (Jan. 2), Trinity Men's Basketball will play six of its next eight on the road in SCAC competition.
The 2023 SCAC Championships will be hosted by the Tigers February 24-26 in the Bell Center, with the top six seeds earning a chance at the league's automatic-qualifying bid into the 2023 NCAA III Men's Basketball Championship tournament.
