BOX SCORE

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – For the first time since 2004, the UWF Men's Basketball won on the road at Alabama Huntsville by a final of 83-72, on Saturday afternoon at Spragins Hall.
 
It's the sixth win for the Argos in 32 tries at UAH, as well as the first win for the program over the Chargers since December 17, 2019. With the win, UWF improves to 5-10 and 3-8 in the Gulf South Conference, while UAH drops to 11-5 and 9-3 in league play.
 
"The first thing is that I have to give credit to our bench", said UWF Head Coach Justin Mann.  "We did not stop cheering and believing in each other. They were louder than the crowd and that is needed when we go on the road.  This is the second straight game that we held a team to below 40 percent shooting from the field and it shows that our defense is fueling both ends of the floor for us."
 
UWF shot 48 percent from the field and made a season-high 13 three-pointers, with Tautvydas Kupstas contributing five three-pointers of his own on his way to a team-high 19 points.  Three other Argonauts scored in double-figures, including Xavier Washington with 12, while Myles Ruth and Sterling White III poured in 11 and 10 points, respectively.
 
Washington and White both nearly had double-doubles with eight rebounds and six assists, respectively, both of which were team-highs.  Rodney Bryant had six assists as well in 19 minutes off the bench.
 
UAH opened the contest on a 10-1 run, before the Argos counter-punched with a 16-6 run to take their first lead of the game on a three from Kupstas at the 10:11 mark of the first half.  The Chargers took control once again and held a three-point lead with 5:05 left, before the hosts went on a 9-0 run to grab their biggest lead of the game at 12 with just over two minutes remaining.
 
Keith Hoffman finished the half with a lay-up to close the deficit to seven and send the teams to the locker room, with UAH up, 40-33.  West Florida carried that momentum into the second frame, outscoring the Chargers, 50-32, while shooting a blistering 63 percent from the field.
 
The Argos went on a 12-4 run to open the second half, earning their first lead since the 17-16 advantage, on a lay-up by Channick Nkoma at the 14:40 mark of the second frame.  UAH would respond with a 10-3 sprint of their own, capped by a Tommy Murr three to push the Charger advantage to six with 12:22 remaining in regulation.
 
From there, UWF would respond, scoring 14 of the next 17 points, with back-to-back three pointers from Sano Rutatika and Keith Hoffman finishing the run and giving the Argonauts a six-point lead of their own with 8:37 left.  After a four-point play from Charger, Luke Burnett, to cut the Argo lead to two with 7:42 remaining, the Argo advantage would never get below for the rest of the contest with a dunk from Washington extending the lead to double-digits for the first time in the contest and leading to the final score.
 
"Basketball is an imperfect game, and we made some mistakes, but effort and energy kept us playing through it", continued Mann.  Winning is hard and even harder on the road, but these guys deserve it.  Go Argos!"
 
Murr had a game-high 26 points and four assists as UAH shot 38 percent for the contest.  Jack Kostel and Burnett added 12 each for the hosts.
 
UWF will return to Pensacola on Thursday, as they host Lee at 7:30 PM at the UWF Field.  Neon, glow in the dark wristbands will be handed to fans.
 
For the latest on the UWF Men's Basketball Team, please visit GoArgos.com or follow the team on Twitter and Instagram @UWFMensBBall.