EDINBURG — The UTRGV Vaqueros kicked off the Matt Figger era in convincing fashion, rolling past the Texas A&M-International Dustdevils 74-59 during their regular-season opener Tuesday at the UTRGV Fieldhouse.
The victory marked the first regular season win for Figger, who was named the Vaqueros’ head coach March 29, assuming the position after former head coach Lew Hill died Feb. 7.
Despite the win, Figger was unsatisfied with the Vaqueros’ performance Tuesday, with the team giving away 17 turnovers, while committing 23 fouls.
“We held them defensively to I think it was 30 percent for the game, so that’s a positive,” Figger said. “I don’t find nothing else positive about this game, besides that we got a win and it’s in the column. But besides us holding them to a field goal percentage, I find absolutely zero positive about what we did tonight besides winning the game.
“Lackadaisical. That’s a great word, lackadaisical. We were so lackadaisical. They just got up and roughed us up a bit and we cowered down to it. Give those guys credit. They watched us play our first game and they took us out of what we wanted to do.”
Forward LaQuan Butler led the Vaqueros in scoring, dropping a game-high 19 points on 5-of-8 shooting. Meanwhile, junior guard Justin Johnson chipped in 13 points, seven rebounds and three steals.
Freshman forward RayQuan Taylor added a spark off the bench, netting nine points, while nabbing eight rebounds.
“There at the end of the game, you want to have your most experienced players on the floor to win the game,” Figger said. “I went with the guy that’s going to help us win the game. That’s why he (Taylor) played down the stretch. He keeps improving. Everyday he has a hard assignment. He’s got to do so many things and he’s only played three years of organized basketball. Today, if we don’t have him, I don’t know where we’re at.”
The Vaqueros controlled the contest from start to finish, trailing for only 22 seconds, taking command of the game with a 9-0 run following the Dustdevils’ opening basket. Butler and Johnson sparked the Vaqueros’ run, scoring five and four points during that span, respectively.
Still, the Dustdevils lingered around, cutting the deficit down to nine on several occasions during the second half.
Butler helped the Vaqueros put the game out of reach during the final period, scoring eight points, including a step-back three with 5:12 left in regulation to put the Vaqueros up 68-52, their second largest lead of the night.
UTRGV forward Marek Nelson provided the highlight of the night, taking the ball coast-to-coast for a thunderous two-handed slam during the first half, giving the Vaqueros a 28-16 lead.
The Vaqueros (1-0, 0-0) return to action at 8 p.m. Friday, taking on the Arizona Wildcats at McKale Memorial Center in Tucson, Arizona.
