TYLER, Texas – The LeTourneau University men's basketball team couldn't recover from a poor start as the YellowJackets fell to UT-Tyler, 89-73, Saturday at the Herrington Patriot Center in an American Southwest Conference East Division game.

 

JJ Rockmore led LeTourneau (9-9 overall, 8-6 ASC) with 21 points on 8-of-13 shooting. Dale Vanwright and Marcel Louimeus scored 16 and 11, respectively. The YellowJackets were 25-of-55 from the floor for 46 percent.

 

The Patriots (11-8, 7-7) jumped out to a 15-9 advantage after a Hakeem Kareem jumper with 13:09 remaining in the first half. The YellowJackets battled back, cutting the deficit to 27-24 with 5:59 left on a jumper by Rockmore.

 

UT-Tyler extended the margin to 41-32 after a Neal Welch 3-pointer with 2:09 left in the half. LeTourneau rallied with buckets by Vanwright, Louimeus and Rockmore, but it was a bucket by Jonathan Joyner that gave the Patriots the momentum heading into the break with his bucket as time expired, giving UT-Tyler a 49-42 lead.

 

UT-Tyler opened the second half by using a 9-2 run, capped by a Travan Porchia bucket to give the Patriots a 58-44 advantage. The YellowJackets answered by using an 8-5 run as Rockmore's 3-pointer with 11:38 remaining cut the deficit to 65-59.

 

But in a game of runs, UT-Tyler used a 9-2 run to extend the lead to 74-62. LeTourneau responded with a 7-2 run, capped by a layup by Rockmore with 5:26 remaining. However, the Patriots used a 13-4 run during the final five minutes to pull away and get the win.

 

Kareem scored 15 of his game-high 24 points in the first half and finished with 12 rebounds for the double-double. Porchia added 14 points, while Dexter McMarion and Welch finished with 12 and 11 points. The Patriots shot 48 percent (31-of-65) from the field.

 

The YellowJackets return to action 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 2 at the Solheim Arena against East Texas Baptist in an American Southwest Conference East Division contest.