Nov. 14, 2009
Box Score
EDINBERG, Texas - Sophomore Olu Ashaolu recorded his second-career double-double as Louisiana Tech opened the season with an 80-62 win at Texas Pan-American on Saturday.
It is the second consecutive 1-0 start for the Bulldogs who were led by Ashaolu's 18-point, 12-rebound performance. Both were career highs for the Toronto, Ontario native.
Tech had three other players join Ashaolu in double figures as senior Kyle Gibson had 16, junior DeAndre Brown had 13 and senior Magnum Rolle with 12.
"I like our balance," Tech head coach Kerry Rupp said. "I think this is going to be a very balanced team inside and out. We just have to keep our competitive edge, play hard and rebound."
It took nine seconds into the game for Tech to get its first points of the season as senior Jamel Guyton found Rolle cutting to the basket for a quick 2-0 lead.
Rolle was whistled for his second foul with 16 minutes to go in the half with a 9-5 lead. Tech used a combined effort from junior Shawn Oliverson and senior David Jackson as Rolle was out for the remainder of the period.
"We used everybody on the bench in the first half," Rupp said. "We ended the first half on an 8-0 run and we really got down and defended. We have to make sure we don't confuse playing hard with fouling."
Guyton nailed his second of three three-pointers in the game to increase the Tech lead to 20-12. After a timeout, sophomore Yonas Berhe drove the lane and passed it to Ashaolu for a one-handed dunk. On the next possession, Oliverson used a high-low play to score and give Tech a 24-12 lead on a 13-2 run over the last four minutes of play in the half.
An 11-0 run by UTPA brought the Broncs to within one point at 26-25. However, Gibson hit his first field goal of the game, a long three pointer, with 5:33 to play in the half to end the run.
With 42 seconds left in the half, Ashaolu drove to the basket for a layup and was fouled. He completed the three-point play to reclaim the lead for the Bulldogs at 37-35. Tech went into the half with a 38-35 point lead.
By halftime, every Tech player had played and six picked up two fouls.
The Bulldogs started the second half with a 7-0 run capped off by a Guyton three-pointer. Tech never let up in the second period. Brown finished a fast break with a layup to give Tech a 20-point lead, 71-51 with 5:57 remaining in the game.
Rolle hit two free throws with 3:31 remaining to give the Bulldogs a 76-55 lead, their biggest of the game. Outscoring the Broncs 42-27 in the second half led the Bulldogs to an 80-62 win.
Tech had 10 steals in the game, led by Ashaolu's three.
The Bulldogs will next be in action when they take on three teams at the Basketball Travelers Tournament in Albuquerque, N.M on Nov. 20-22. The first game is against Miami University at 7 p.m. on Friday.
