Second-Half Surge: UMHB men’s basketball heads into holiday break after defeating Berry in second-half comeback win

Photo by Luke Zayas/True To The Cru

BELTON–The position that the Mary Hardin-Baylor men’s basketball team found itself in at halftime on Tuesday was not an unfamiliar one. But it certainly was unfavorable.

Berry College, out of the Southern Athletic Association, jumped out to a 40-31 lead at the break, pulling away from the Crusaders in the final minutes of the opening half. It was very much along the same lines as UMHB’s previous contest, in which Sul Ross State led 39-31 at the intermission, only to see The Cru respond with a big second half in a 69-64 victory. 

The question coming out of the locker room on this particular afternoon inside the Mayborn Campus Center was if UMHB would be able to repeat that same second-half success against the Vikings, who were back to full strength with do-it-all scorer Blake Campbell healthy again. 

With a win, UMHB would head into the holiday break with an overall record above .500, and two-game win streak. A loss would leave The Cru frustrated, with no chance to reconcile the defeat until a Dec. 31 road duel at Division II Texas A&M-Kingsville. 

But much like the performance seen in Alpine, Texas three days prior, UMHB separated itself over the final 20 minutes, and emerged with an 85-78 victory. The Crusaders stepped up the intensity, battled for an above-average number of offensive rebounds, and made the necessary plays that put them in the lead for good. 

“We didn’t start the game bad, but we had that lull where we got frustrated [with some foul calls and non-calls],” UMHB head coach Clif Carroll noted postgame as his squad improved to 6-5 overall. “But more than anything, we have to play hard. We have to come, bring our boots, and go to work every day. 

“When we don’t do that, we’re going to get beat by everybody. But when we play hard, we can beat anybody. That’s the dichotomy of this whole thing.” 

UMHB endured its fair share of disappointing defeats in the first two months of this season, but wins like the one on Tuesday equally showed just how strong The Cru can be behind a cohesive and consistent attack. 

Refusing to accept a sixth loss, UMHB outscored the Vikings 54-38 in the second half, fighting for extra possessions and moving the ball well around the perimeter. After starting the game 0-of-8 from 3-point range, UMHB converted on 4-of-10 3-point attempts in the final 20 minutes. Additionally, the Crusaders were 20-of-23 from the free throw line in that span, and 11 of their 17 offensive rebounds in the game came in the second half. 

Offensive rebounding played into the result majorly, as UMHB turned its 17 offensive boards into 19 second-chance points. Ryan Pondant led the effort on the boards, with 10 total rebounds, four of which came on the offensive end. It marked his second-consecutive double-digit rebounding performance after tallying 14 against SRSU on Saturday. 

“These last two games he’s put together on the boards have been incredible,” Carroll said, referring to Pondant. “That’s why we recruited him. That’s why we think he’s an All-Conference, All-Region, All-American kind of guy. He gives us that guy down there [in the post] that is just tougher than everybody else. He leads the charge, and we had 17 offensive rebounds [as a team]. You’re going to win a lot of games when you do that.” 

Beyond what the final numbers revealed, UMHB’s will to win displayed itself time and time again as the final 20 minutes unfolded. Perhaps the most fitting example came with 15:50 left, when a Josiah Johnson 3-pointer ricocheted off the rim. Initially, it appeared that the rebound would fall into Berry’s possession, but Kyle Wright did not let that happen. The senior guard sprinted towards the bouncing ball, getting to it just before a Berry defender did, and kept the possession with UMHB. Wright then found LD Butler near the baseline, quickly leading to a layup for Butler, as Berry’s lead became just 45-44, capping a 10-0 scoring run for UMHB. 

“That’s what makes Kyle special, those plays right there,” Carroll said. “The way that he affects the game is by going in there and imposing his will and making it impossible [for the opponent] to run an offense. He is everywhere. He’s tipping passes and diving on the floor. 

“It’s contagious. All of a sudden, the next guy will do it, and the next guy after him will do it. I’m really proud of the way Kyle played in the second half today.” 

Wright also stepped up with four steals on the defensive end in addition to six points, six rebounds, and two assists. Johnson was the only Crusader with more steals than Wright in the victory, as Johnson tallied six in 32 minutes off the bench. Johnson also finished as UMHB’s leading scorer on the offensive end, with 26 points, marking his second-highest scoring performance of the season. 

Notably, he contributed greatly to UMHB’s solid day at the free throw line, making all 15 of his attempts from the charity stripe. And as a team, the Crusaders lived up to their status as the American Southwest Conference’s No. 1 free throw-shooting squad, converting on 31-of-36 shots at the line. 

But Johnson was not the only one scoring for The Cru, and that element of UMHB’s performance, especially down the stretch, contributed to the offensive efficiency. Eli Beard (22 points) and Pondant (12 points) each had fairly strong shooting performances, and in the second half, Butler came through with some timely buckets. 

The game opened with Berry holding a 13-6 lead by the 13:32 mark of the opening half, and the Vikings extended that advantage to 20-11 on a pair of Drew Winegarden free throws just two minutes later. Searching for a scoring run, UMHB tallied the next eight points, shifting the momentum in its favor as Wright came up with a steal and took it to the other end for a layup, putting The Cru in front, 21-20. It marked UMHB’s first lead of the day. 

It did not last long, though, with Campbell–who finished with a team-high 30 points for Berry–extending the Vikings’ lead to 10, 37-27, on consecutive layups as the first half drew to a close. 

Of course, it only wrote the script better for UMHB’s second-half rally. With 5:39 left, Berry’s Braxton Benham swished a pair of free throws, knotting the score at 60 apiece. 11 seconds later, Beard connected on a 3-pointer for The Cru, once again providing necessary separation that kept UMHB in control. 

Berry never again tied the score, nor took the lead back, at any point as the final five minutes ticked away. With 1:24 to play, Jordan Krueger gave the Vikings a hint of hope with his 3-pointer, cutting UMHB’s lead to 75-70. But the Crusaders converted on 10-of-12 free throw attempts in the final minute, and sealed the victory. 

In a season that has so far revealed numerous high points along with several low moments, the holiday break comes at an ideal time. While the wins over SRSU and Berry were not polished performances, they were certainly steps in the right direction. And with conference play ramping up in early January, these next two weeks will provide time for a reset before the push towards the ASC title intensifies. 

“This year so far has been very trying, not just for the players, but for me as well, just trying to figure it out,” Carroll said. “It’s been very emotional with the games we’ve had already. All of us are tired, and we need some time to reset. Hopefully we’ll come back after Christmas ready to roll.”