UNT Barely Misses

[MeanGreen61]

Men's basketball: UNT barely misses out on upset

09:05 AM CST on Wednesday, December 7, 2005

By Brett Vito / Staff Writer

COLLEGE STATION — When the ball left Kendrick Davis’ hand late Tuesday night, the North Texas junior was confident the Mean Green were on their way to perhaps the biggest upset win of Johnny Jones’ five-year tenure at UNT’s head coach.

The Mean Green were trailing Texas A&M by two when Davis hoisted a 3-point shot with one second left on the clock in front of a hushed crowd at Reed Arena.

The silence was broken when Davis’ shot bounced high off the back of the rim at the buzzer to preserve the Aggies’ 72-70 win in front of 5,348.

“That is the type of shot I practice all the time,” Davis said. “I am the type of person who will live with it whether I make it or miss it. I will shoot that shot again. It felt good. I don’t regret it one bit.”

The near miss brought to an end perhaps the Mean Green’s best performance of the season.

UNT (2-3) led through much of the first half, came back from a 10-point deficit in the final six minutes and had three chances in the final 2:42 to tie the game or take the lead. The Mean Green missed out on all three opportunities and saw a chance for an upset slip away.

Texas A&M (5-0) came into the game on an early roll and is receiving votes in the USA Today/ESPN Top 25 Coaches Poll.

“We played them tough, but we couldn’t get it to fall at the end,” Jones said. “They did what they had to do to get a ‘W.’ This kind of game will help us if we can come out next time with the same intensity.”

That intensity helped UNT jump out to a 25-21 lead midway through the first half after Davis hit one of his two 3-point shots on the night.

Junior guard Calvin Watson scored 22 points to lead UNT, while Davis had 21.

Texas A&M overcame a solid performance from UNT’s backcourt, thanks to the play of Joseph Jones. The 6-9 sophomore forward dominated the paint and finished with a career-high 35 points to go along with 13 rebounds.

Joseph Jones’ point total was the highest for a Texas A&M player in 11 years.

Davis called Jones a monster, a comment the Aggies’ leading player accepted as a compliment.

“I will take it if that is what they are going to give to me,” Joseph Jones said. “They were competing really hard, but my guards did a great job of getting me the ball and I was just feeling it.”

Jones was especially effective late in the first half when he scored seven straight points to spark a 14-6 Texas A&M run that gave the Aggies a 38-31 lead at intermission.

Jones finished with 17 points before intermission and helped put the Mean Green’s front line in foul trouble early.

UNT senior center Jeffrey Simpson picked up a pair of fouls in less than two minutes and was joined on the bench a short time later by sophomore forward Quincy Williams, who also picked up two quick fouls.

“It was difficult for us because he is an excellent post player,” Johnny Jones said. “He is a great finisher and got to the line.”

UNT was able to stay in the game, despite Jones’ big night.

The Mean Green got to within one point five times early in the second half before Texas A&M pushed its lead to 67-57 with 6:13 left on a pair of free throws from Dominique Kirk.

UNT got back to within 70-68 on a Watson jumper with 2:42 left, but turned the ball over and missed a pair of shots in the closing moments, including Davis’ last-second 3-pointer at the buzzer.

Even though UNT didn’t get the result it wanted, Johnny Jones was happy with the look Davis got at the basket.

“Kendrick has been a really good 3-point shooter for us,” he said. “He is a clutch player. That is a great shot for him. We just didn’t get the bounce.”