Angelo State University Athletics

SAN ANGELO, Texas – The Angelo State Rams suffered a heartbreaking 69-63 loss on Friday afternoon in the season opener at Plachy Hall as the Grizzlies of Adams State battled back from a 15-point deficit in Alamosa, Colorado.
 
The Rams started the game on a 14-8 run highlighted by a pair of long balls by Jabbari Barry, ASU grabbed nine defensive boards during the first 10 minutes of the game while forcing six Grizzly turnovers to extend their lead to 23-13 on Javion Stephen free throws.
 
Adams State cut the lead to 25-17 before an Ashraf Barsham dunk with a foul as the three-point play sparked a 7-0 scoring run to make it 32-17, forcing an Adams State timeout with 6:22 left. The Grizzlies responded with an 11-2 run of their own before an Aurrion Harris steal setup a Keenan Emmanuel layup at 36-28. The teams would trade free throws late in the period with Angelo State leading 38-32 at the half.
 
Barsham led the way for the Rams in the first half with 11 points and five boards followed by Barry with eight points of his own, Harris grabbed a team-best six rebounds with Stephen dishing out three assists. ASU shot 45.8% from the floor including 42.9% from behind the arc and 92.0% from the line.
 
The Grizzlies started the second half on an 8-5 run to cut the Angelo State lead to 43-40 heading into a media timeout. The teams traded long balls as a small Adams State scoring run chipped away at the lead, Barry ended a scoring drought with a fast-break layup followed by a Grizzly shot-clock violation that set up a Misael Cruz Rodriguez three-point play with 11:46 left.
 
Adams State used the free throw line to cut the Rams lead to 52-51 before Harris hit two freebies followed by an offensive board and bucket to make it 56-51. The Grizzlies responded with a five-point run to tie the game before Cruz Rodriguez contributed six straight Angelo State points at 62-58, Adams State tied the game at the line again with 2:26 remaining before a Barsham steal that led to a free throw by Harris at 63-62. Adams State took their first lead of the game with 49 seconds left at the stripe, closing the game with a 69-63 win.
 
Barry led the Angelo State offensive attack as the senior went 7-of-15 from the floor including 3-of-9 from behind the arc for a team-best 17 points to go along with three boards, four assists and two steals in his 28 minutes of action. Harris grabbed 12 rebounds with eight points to finish just shy of a double-double while Barsham and Cruz Rodriguez finished with 11 points each.
 
TEAM NOTES

• Angelo State is now 5-3 all-time against the Grizzlies
• The Rams move to 38-23 in season openers dating back to 1965
• ASU's largest lead of the first half (15) came at the 5:13 mark
• The Rams shot 92.9% (13-of-14) from the free throw line in the first 20 minutes
• Angelo State led the game for 35:02 (87.6%)
• Jabbari Barry reached double-figures for the third time in his ASU career
• Aurrion Harris had a team-best 12 rebounds in his first game in Blue & Gold

UP NEXT
The Rams conclude their regional road trip on Saturday afternoon with a 1:00 p.m. CT tipoff against Western Colorado at Paul Wright Gym in Gunnison, Colorado.