A suffocating defense and timely shooting from the 3-point line propelled the host LeTourneau University men's basketball team to a 73-46 rout of Millsaps on Sunday afternoon in Solheim Arena.
 
Feeding off the energy of a raucous crowd of 536, the YellowJackets (1-0) clamped down for defensive pressure and held the Majors to 27.9% shooting from the field and just eight points in the first 20 minutes.
 
LeTourneau (1-0) was led by freshman Sam Talbert, who knocked down six 3 pointers to lead the YellowJackets with 18 points in his LETU debut. The rookie was joined in double digits by reserves junior Roozario Wiggins, who had 14 points, 7 rebounds and 2 blocks and Josh Thornton added 12 points on the strength of three 3 pointers. LETU got a spark from junior Giovanny Thompson, who had eight points, five rebounds and two blocks in the win; in addition, junior Chris Hynes had seven assists and four rebounds off the bench.
 
Millsaps (0-2) was led by the seven-point efforts by Alex Gerchow and Mac McElveen, who each had seven points. McElveen also had a team-high eight rebounds in the loss, plus Gerchow had three blocks. The 46 points by the Majors are the lowest by a LETU opponent since UT Dallas was held to 44 on January 24, 2013.
 
"Our staff was very proud of our effort," said LETU head coach Dan Miller, who was making his head coaching debut. "We definitely shared the basketball and gave a good defensive effort. It is a nice win to build on for the rest of the season."


LeTourneau held a slight 4-2 lead with 14:36 to play in the first half until they scored 20 of the next 26 points in the first half for a 24-8 halftime lead.  Off the bench, Thornton energized the crowd with two 3 pointers and Wiggins added five points and six rebounds as the LETU bench outscored Millsaps 17-3 in the first 20 minutes.
 
In the second half, the YellowJackets continued to feed off the energetic crowd. Thompson and Wiggins each had thunderous slams in the second 20 minutes for the YellowJackets. "We want to thank the student section for being our sixth man," said Miller. The first 250 students to the game were given LETU Blue Crew shirts, prior to the game. Talbert scored 15 of his 18 and Wiggins scored 9 of his 12 in the final 20 minutes to lead LETU.
 
The next three games for the YellowJackets are away from Solheim Arena, starting with a 7:30 p.m. tilt at Hendrix College on Friday, Nov. 21.