ERIC SCHMOLDT Star-Tribune staff writer | Posted: Thursday, November 20, 2008 12:00 am
LARAMIE - The little guys didn't take it easy on Tyson Johnson.
Prairie View A&M did its fair share of fouling.
And when it didn't, the Panthers clogged the inside, drew charges and forced awkward layups.
It wasn't fun, but Johnson got the last laugh.
He made a pair of free throws with just over a minute remaining and then snared a blocked shot out of mid-air with less than 30 seconds left, laying the ball in the basket all in one motion to help the Wyoming Cowboys hold off Prairie View A&M in front of 6,896 at the Arena-Auditorium on Wednesday.
"I just saw Brandon trying to create," Johnson said. "He's our best player and he went to the basket. I saw the ball, it was tipped and I just went and got it."
Johnson finished with 20 points, doing most of his damage at the free-throw line, and had a team-high seven rebounds.
And the Pokes needed him badly in the final two minutes as Prairie View A&M trimmed what was once a double-digit deficit to just one point with 90 seconds remaining.
"I think we just let the pressure get to us a little bit and let them make a lot of shots," Johnson said. "We didn't really defend well, but I knew we was going to close it out because we've got three seniors out there and we just worked hard the entire game."
It certainly wasn't pretty.
The Cowboys made just 1 of 9 3-point attempts in the first half, taking just a 34-31 lead to the break despite leading by 10 less than seven minutes in.
And the second half was just as much of a grinder, with UW keeping the Panthers just out of reach the entire stretch.
"Prairie View is a good basketball team. Are they great? No, but they're going to be a good team," UW coach Heath Schroyer said. "And you can turn on the ticker every night and you can see VMI go beat Kentucky, you can see Southwest Baptist go beat Utah. You can see that every single night, and for us to get a win, with a lot of young guys that are playing, is great for us."
The Panthers unleashed a smaller set that gave UW fits. Prairie View A&M had seven players play double-digit minutes, although none of them was taller than 6-foot-7.
Three of Wyoming's five starters were listed at that height or taller.
And instead of taking advantage, the smaller lineup bogged down the Pokes' big men, limiting centers Mikhail Linskens and Adam Waddell to just 29 total minutes and five combined points.
"I didn't think we played great, but it's a lot to learn from," Schroyer said. "It was a really hard matchup for (the bigs). As easy as it sounds, like we're just going to pound it in there on them, we have to guard them on the other end of the floor, and they went five guards most of the game."
All five of the Panthers' starters finished in double figures, led by Darnell Hugee, who had 19 points and 10 rebounds.
And Prairie View's lineup fit just fine again for UW redshirt freshman Afam Muojeke, who had a game-high 23 points. Senior guard Brandon Ewing had 14 points and eight assists.
But no senior was bigger than Johnson, who tied his career high in points and free throws.
"I thought that Ty, down the stretch, was really good," Schroyer said. "We went to him, got to the free-throw line.
"Obviously his put-back was big."
Contact sports reporter Eric Schmoldt at (307) 266-0578 or eric.schmoldt@trib.com.
COWBOYS TRACKER
WEDNESDAY: Wyoming 80, Prairie View A&M 75.
RECORDS: Panthers 1-4; Cowboys 2-0.
TY GAME: Senior forward Tyson Johnson put the game on ice with a pair of free throws and a put-back layup in the final two minutes.
HE SAID IT: "For us to get a win, with a lot of young guys that are playing, is great for us." - UW coach Heath Schroyer